THREE men on trial for allegedly raping a young woman at Ballarat last year have been found not guilty.
A jury of eight men and four women returned the verdict shortly before 1pm today after about nine hours of deliberations.
Brothers, Charles Anthony Smith, of Ballarat North, and Matthew Benjamin Smith, of Point Cook, both 21, along with Bennet Crouch, 22, of Wendouree, had been charged with raping the 21-year-old woman after a night out in Ballarat on June 7, last year.
Charles Smith and Bennet Crouch had pleaded not guilty in the County Court at Ballarat to 11 charges, while Matthew Smith had pleaded not guilty to six charges.
The jury returned not guilty verdicts on all charges.
More to come.
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