Overview
- Ward is standing trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court on two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of sexual assault over an alleged January 2023 encounter.
- The actor gave in-court testimony on Monday, July 6, 2026, denying the allegations and saying the sexual activity was consensual and that the woman was an active participant.
- Prosecutors have played the complainant’s recorded police interviews in which she says she felt ‘numb’ and ‘scared’, tried to leave the car and was told to close the door.
- Judge Rosa Dean instructed the jury that the key questions are whether there was consent and whether Ward had a reasonable belief in consent, and the prosecution and defence offered sharply conflicting accounts.
- The trial remains underway with more witness evidence and documents to be heard, and Ward retains the presumption of innocence while the case draws intense public attention because of his profile in Top Boy and other films.