Oxford medic on trial for rape of fellow student found not guilty

Niall McPaul has been cleared by a jury, following a court case in which he was accused of rape of a fellow Oxford student.

McPaul, who was previously an Oxford medical student, has always denied the single count of rape.

The jury’s verdict of not guilty comes after the woman accused McPaul of raping her whilst she was asleep.

The jury at Oxford Crown court were told the woman had told McPaul the previous evening: “I’m not going to sleep with you.”

The un-named woman claimed McPaul had said “this is really awkward” after allegedly raping her.

McPaul had initially met the woman in 2016 at a US election party, five months before the alleged rape.

In 2017, on the morning of the alleged rape, the woman had allowed McPaul to stay over after a party and they shared a bed and cuddled.

McPaul’s defence lawyer Eleanor Laws suggested the woman had “engaged in consensual kissing and sexual touching, while they were in bed together, before she had gone to sleep and after she had woken up”.

The court also heard the woman pressed the case after discussing it on Facebook.

She was interviewed by the police and had an examination, which revealed no injuries. She then posted an account of the alleged rape to 3,000 people on her Facebook.

The jury, made up of seven men and five women, deliberated the verdict for seven hours and 27 minutes.

The judge presiding over the trial thanked the jury for their “careful consideration.”

His family sobbed after hearing the verdict.

When McPaul was approached for comment following the trial, he said it was too early to speak.

During the trial the jury heard McPaul say: “I have taught about consent. I care about consent. I have lots of friends who work in that sort of area. This whole thing has sort of bothered me a lot.”

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