One text from an alleged rape victim that was withheld by police leading to two years of torment for an innocent man said: “It wasn’t against my will”. / Sky News
Another young man accused of rape has been freed following revelations British police withheld text messages on his accuser's mobile phone that proved his innocence.
Isaac Itiary, 25, spent four months in jail awaiting trial until all charges were dropped yesterday when it was revealed that police had text messages from the teenage accuser proving she had lied.
Mr Itiary was charged with the rape of a child under 16 in July 2017, but police only disclosed "relevant material" to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on December 17, just two days ahead of Tuesday's hearing at Inner London Crown Court.
Mr Itiary was charged in July with six counts of sexual activity with a child, two counts of rape and one count of making indecent photographs when the girl was aged 14 and 15. He said he believed the girl was 19 at the time.
Text messages previously requested in September but only provided this week showed the girl posed as a 19-year-old. It led to an emergency hearing in which all charges were dropped.
It comes just days after Liam Allan, 22, had his case thrown out after police failed to hand over more than 40,000 messages from his accuser — including some which pestered him for casual sex — to prosecutors and the defence.
Incredibly, at least one of the police officers who went after Mr Allan, detective Constable Mark Azariah, was also involved in Mr Itiary's case. Constable Azariah, 37, who works on the Metropolitan Police's rape and sex abuse unit, reportedly remains on active duty.
The rape case against Liam Allan, 22, collapsed after vital evidence was revealed at the last minute. Photo / ITV
Mr Allan publicly forgave Constable Azariah for the apparent oversight that wrongly marked him an accused rapist for two years until his case was sensationally thrown out last Friday.
"I would like to make it clear that this man is not solely responsible for the failures of the system. He should not be used as a scapegoat," he said.
The collapse of a second rape case in similar circumstances has prompted Scotland Yard to announce a review of all current rape and child sex abuse investigations.
Every live case where the Metropolitan Police is in discussion with the CPS, will be examined to "ensure that all digital evidence has been properly examined, documented and shared with the CPS to meet obligations under disclosure", a Scotland Yard spokesman said.
Mr Allan, a criminology student, had been charged with 12 counts of rape and sexual assault against one woman and faced the possibility of more than 10 years in prison and a lifetime on the sex offenders' register.
But the day before his trial at Croydon Crown Court last week, police announced the existence of 40,000 previously undisclosed text and WhatsApp messages between the accuser, her friends and Mr Allan which cast doubt on the rape claims.
In the graphic exchanges, the complainant discussed her fantasies of extreme sex acts, including being raped. There were also messages in which she clearly stated that her sexual encounters with Mr Allan had been entirely consensual.
Prosecutor Jerry Hayes later revealed that he had been told by police that the phone records could not be disclosed because they contained "very personal material; nothing capable of undermining the prosecution case or assisting the defence".
"It appears the police officer in the case has not reviewed the disk, which is quite appalling," Mr Hayes said.
Liam Allan says the officer in charge of his case, Detective Constable Mark Azariah, should not be made a scapegoat. Photo / ITV
The judge demanded a review of disclosure evidence by the Metropolitan Police and called for an inquiry at the "very highest level" of the Crown Prosecution Service.
The CPS issued a statement announcing charges against Mr Itiary, who was in custody, had been dropped just before he was due to front Inner London Crown Court yesterday.
"On December 17, 2017, the police provided new material to the CPS, which had previously been requested, and this was reviewed," it said.
"Prosecutors decided that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction and we offered no evidence against the defendant at a hearing today (Tuesday, December 19)."
Metropolitan Police Commander Richard Smith, who oversees rape investigations, said: "I completely understand that this case may raise concerns about our compliance with disclosure legislation given the backdrop of the case of R v Allan last week.
"The Met is completely committed to understanding what went wrong in the case of Mr Allan and is carrying out a joint review with the CPS, the findings of which will be published.
"Rape investigations are by their nature very complex, and often hinge on the contradictory accounts of the alleged suspect and the complainant about what has taken place.
"We are reviewing all our investigations, where we are in discussion with the CPS, to assure ourselves that we are meeting our disclosure obligations in an acceptable timescale based on the volume of data that some cases involve."
