Michael Ward Acquitted of All Rape and Sexual Assault Charges

Michael Ward was acquitted on 10 July 2026 of two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of sexual assault at Snaresbrook Crown Court. The jury returned unanimous not-guilty verdicts on all five charges after one day of deliberations. The charges related to an alleged incident on or after 2 January 2023.

Prosecutors said the offences occurred inside a Mercedes car after Ward invited the complainant into the vehicle following an after-party in Stratford. Ward had met the woman at a New Year’s Day party in Ilford, east London. He was arrested on 18 January 2023.

Ward told the court the sexual activity was consensual. He said he sent the complainant a smiling emoji with a heart after the encounter and she replied telling him to enjoy the rest of his night. The complainant told the court she repeatedly indicated she wanted to leave and had felt intimidated by Ward’s fame.

She said she had been left in pain and believed there had been blood on her clothing. Forensic examination of the complainant’s clothing found no blood. She also told the court she had been “in total shock” when she learned of the allegations and had never felt uncomfortable around Ward.

The trial was briefly interrupted when Murad Merali, a YouTuber with more than 500,000 followers, was removed from the courtroom for posting videos commenting on evidence while proceedings were ongoing. Judge Dean ordered Merali to take down the videos and leave the courthouse and alerted the Attorney General to consider whether the posts amounted to contempt of court.

Ward received the Bafta Rising Star Award in 2020.