Disgraced former footballer Gary Charles has been cleared of sexually assaulting a female police officer by a jury.
The ex-Aston Villa and England defender allegedly touched the woman between the legs after she pulled him out of a taxi in Nottingham for being drunk and disorderly.
But the 35- year- old denied sexual assault, claiming he could not remember the incident, and CCTV footage showed he was just waving his arms around.
Mr Charles, of Stretton, near Alfreton, Derbyshire, hugged the dock officer and kissed his barrister as he was found not guilty, following a three-day trial at Nottingham Crown Court.
The footballer had taken a taxi from Alfreton to visit his girlfriend in Sneinton, Nottingham, on August 12 last year, but when he arrived, he was asleep, the court heard.
Mr Charles said he had been out drinking all day and could not recall the incident, but said he did not touch the officer in any sexual way. A jury of seven men and five women took less than three hours to return the verdict of not guilty.
