Case shouldn't have been a CPS/police matter given "1000s of social media messages suggesting there was no assault, info indicating his accuser had serious mental health issues, & evidence from her computer suggesting the allegations had not only been false but she had considered withdrawing them"

wntk · 2022-03-18T02:24:13+00:00

"Another of Mr Varney’s solicitors, Anna O’Mara, said: ‘I had never before seen a person charged with an offence when there existed such strong evidence pointing to his innocence.’ She was further shocked by the manner in which the police conducted their interview of Hannah, when this evidence later emerged. She described it thus: “Hanna initially was reluctant to commit herself to making an allegation against Elgan. This eventually led to the officer pointing out to her what the police would need to prove a case. It was only after Hannah had received prompts from the officer that she hesitantly developed a disjointed allegation against Elgan”.

It would appear that the combined actions of her ‘friend’, “Michelle”, together with subtle police pressure, precipitated an allegation which Hannah later regretted – but felt trapped and unable to retract. Was it this, on top of a history of mental illness and suicidal thoughts, that caused her suicide? We will never know for sure, but it seems likely that the existing criminal investigation procedures were hardly Hannah’s friend – let alone Mr Varney’s."

wntk · 2022-03-18T02:25:12+00:00

"Hannah eventually accused Elgan of raping her on unspecified dates, once in the autumn of 2014 and again in February 2015. There was no forensic evidence of rape. The only evidence against Elgan was in a statement made by Hannah to the police six months before her death, and even this was contradictory and bore no relationship to the allegations she originally confided to university friends.

It is also undermined by more than 10,000 Facebook and WhatsApp messages between them that have now been transcribed and analysed. Seen by The Mail on Sunday, they showed the pair continued to have an amicable relationship after the alleged rapes."

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