Former Bristol PC found not guilty of rape

A former Bristol police officer has been cleared of three rape charges by a jury.

Kenny Lewis, of Bibury Close, Nailsea, was also found not guilty yesterday of a misconduct charge in which it was alleged he had sex with an 18-year-old woman in a police car.

But he still faces sentencing today after previously admitting five charges of misconduct in public office relating to a string of sexual liaisons with members of the public while on duty in Bristol.

A jury at Exeter Crown Court had heard claims that Lewis, 26, used a force computer to track down the teenage college student and repeatedly visited her home before taking her off to a remote spot near Bristol International Airport where she performed oral sex in his police car.

Jurors also heard prosecution claims that he forced himself on a 33-year-old lap dancer he met after he interviewed her as a witness to a road crash.

Giving evidence in his own defence Lewis, who joined the police at the age of 19, admitted having sexual liaisons with two women while on duty as a PC in Bristol.

But the jury accepted his assertion that all the encounters were with the women's consent.

He admitted that when rape allegations were made against him he initially lied to other officers about having any contact with the complainant because he was "completely petrified".

Lewis insisted that though he lied to police in his initial interviews he was telling the truth in court.

He admitted having four sexual encounters with the student – two when he was on duty – but said none of them had taken place in a police car.

Lewis resigned from the Avon and Somerset force in November last year having qualified as acting sergeant.

The charges the former constable admitted involved "misfeasance in public office" – "misfeasance" means misuse of legal power – and "wilful misconduct".

The allegations stemmed from a series of incidents between 2005 and last year.