Man City’s Benjamin Mendy moved to ‘one of UK’s toughest prisons’ over safety fears
Posted Wednesday, January 05, 2022 by Dailystar.co.uk
Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy was switched to a different prison on December 23, meaning he spent Christmas in top-security jail Strangeways in Manchester
Benjamin Mendy was categorised as a vulnerable prisoner at Liverpool's HMP Altcourse (Image: Getty Images)
Benjamin Mendy was secretly switched to a different prison just before Christmas over fears for his safety.
The Manchester City footballer is accused of seven counts of rape, and he will be back in court on Friday.
Mendy, 27, was in Liverpool’s Category-B HMP Altcourse up until December 23.
As fears grew over his safety, The Sun report the France international player was moved just before Christmas to top-security prison Strangeways.
It is dubbed one of the UK's toughest prisons and is located in Manchester.
Mendy was driven there on December 23 along with co-defendant Louis Saha Matturie, 40.
It is claimed the pair were moved to Strangeways because their case is so high-profile.
A view of HMP Altcourse in Liverpool, which Manchester City's Benjamin Mendy has now moved from
The decision came as the Category-A conditions at Strangeways were felt to be better equipped to deal with any potential issues.
A source told The Sun: “He won’t know what’s hit him coming from Altcourse, which is a privately run prison. It’s one of the toughest jails in the country.
"His other problem will be the amount of Man United fans in there.
Benjamin Mendy will remain in custody ahead of his trial on rape charges (Image: GETTY)
"They will be screaming his name for weeks so he won’t be getting much sleep, especially as he’s charged with sex offences.
"There are a lot of Blues’ fans there as well, but even the most avid will struggle to protect an alleged sex offender.”
The alleged seven counts of rape against Mendy involve four women, and he is also facing a charge of sexual touching against a fifth.
An aerial view of Strangeways HM Prison Manchester, UK
This coming Friday, a hearing will deal with custody time and bail arrangements for both Mendy and Matturie.
On January 24, a plea and trial preparation hearing will take place.
And a trial is set to take place on either June 27 or August 1 of next year.
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