Kilkenny man acquitted of rape

A Co Kilkenny man has been acquitted of raping a girl in a nightclub car park two years ago.

A Co Kilkenny man has been acquitted of raping a girl in a nightclub car park two years ago.

The 23-year-old man had pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to raping and orally raping the then 18-year-old woman in a Kilkenny car park in the early hours of April 27th, 2008.

The jury of seven women and five men returned their unanimous verdicts of not guilty on both counts after almost three hours deliberation on the fifth day of the trial.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy thanked the jurors for their attention to the case and exempted them from further service for five years.