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19
Mar
Ex-Harrogate bouncer cleared of rape
A former Harrogate bouncer has been found not guilty of raping a teenage girl at a flat in the town.
Paul Geagan, 58, was accused of one count of rape but he was acquitted by a jury today (March 19) following a two-day trial.
Mr Geagan, formerly known as Paul Christmas, was quizzed by police in April 2022 but denied raping the girl and told officers there had been no sexual activity at all.
During the trial, which began on Tuesday, March 17, barrister Nick Adlington, for the prosecution, alleged that Mr Geagan had raped the girl at a Harrogate flat in the late 1990s when he was working as a doorman in the town.
The complainant, now an adult, finally reported the allegation to police in March 2022, more than two decades afterwards.
Mr Geagan, of Hampsthwaite Road, denied the allegation and was acquitted by the jury this afternoon.
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