The woman, 29, was allegedly molested by the prosecution, who then made her engage in oral sex in December 2022.
However, the 34-year-old Wallabies star said that their interaction was consensual. According to his legal team, the woman had lied to her fiancé in order to win his compassion.
A jury found Mr. Beale not guilty of three charges following a two-week trial.
The decision makes it possible for Mr. Beale to play again after Rugby Australia suspended him following his indictment.
Mr. Beale declared his innocence outside the court, saying, “My family and I have experienced a terrible year, and I’m very delighted that the
The truth has emerged.”
He and the complainant, who had both been drinking, met at the Beach Road Hotel in the Bondi suburb on a night out, according to the case in the New South Wales District Court.
The jury watched CCTV footage that, according to the prosecution, showed the moment Mr. Beale touched the woman’s butt, as well as later film of them going into and out of the men’s restroom.
The lady, who is not allowed to be identified, testified that Mr. Beale had forced his way into her bathroom stall and groped her.
She informed Mr. Beale that “you’re married, I’m engaged, we can’t” and that she had told him “no” several times.
When the woman approached Mr. Beale a month later, he apologized several times and suggested he could have “misjudged the whole scenario” in a phone call that was captured by the police. He admitted to having “messed up” in a separate call with his manager that the police had also taped.
Prosecutors concluded their case by saying he had acted in a “reckless” manner, regardless of the woman’s consent.
However, Mr. Beale’s attorneys claimed that the complainant was the one who instigated the consensual events in the restroom.
CCTV revealed the lady had entered the restroom second, despite the woman’s initial claims that Mr. Beale had followed her, according to his attorney Margaret Cunneen.
Inside the men’s restroom, witnesses claimed to have overheard what sounded like a sexual act, but there was no agitation or protest.
