Footballer Thomas Partey facing two additional rape charges

Former Arsenal footballer Thomas Partey has been charged with two additional counts of rape against a new alleged victim.

It comes after the 32-year-old previously pleaded not guilty to five counts of rape against two women, and one count of sexual assault allegedly relating to a third woman.

It means Partey now stands accused of sexual offences against four women.

The two new charges relate to alleged offences in 2020 which were first reported to police last August. They follow a new investigation from the Metropolitan Police.

Partey will appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 13 March for a first hearing relating to the two new charges.

The Ghanaian international was given conditional bail at Southwark Crown Court in September after entering not guilty pleas to the original five charges.

The alleged offences, which he was charged with last year, took place between 2021 and 2022 when he was playing for north London club Arsenal.

He was charged four days after leaving Arsenal when his contract expired at the end of June.

The charges followed an investigation by detectives, which started in February 2022 after police first received a report of rape.

The trial is scheduled to take place under a High Court judge on 2 November this year.

Since departing the Premier League, Partey has been playing for Spanish football club Villareal. He joined on a one-year deal in the summer, with the signing confirmed after the midfielder had been charged with rape.

Partey joined Arsenal for £45.3m from Atletico Madrid in October 2020 and made 130 Premier League appearances for Mikel Arteta's side.

His lawyer, Jenny Wiltshire, has previously said he "denies all the charges against him" and that he welcomed "the opportunity to finally clear his name".