Corby pub landlord found not guilty of three rapes

A well-known Corby publican has been acquitted of three counts of rape and two counts of assault.

Craig Haldane, 57, who runs The Cardigan Arms in The Jamb, Corby, was yesterday (Thursday, September 9) found not guilty of all the charges against him at Northampton Crown Court following three hours of jury deliberations.

He had been standing trial since Monday charged with the historic allegations that spanned a number of years.

In court were several members of Haldane's extended family who cheered and cried when he was found not guilty. Haldane, who was formerly in the Royal Navy, cried out and then thanked the jury for their verdicts.

In her summing up, Judge Rebecca Crane said Haldane had been accused of punching the woman in the face on several occasions, on the back of her thighs and of twisting her hair. He was also accused of kicking her and of pulling her downstairs.

After one of the alleged rapes, the complainant had said she had showed her ripped clothing to members of her family who had warned him off her.

She said she had also sought help from women's refuge services in Corby and from her doctor. She also alleged in court that when she had tried to seek emergency help from the police, Haldane had twisted the telephone cord around her neck.

The complainant's hairdresser had also told the court how she would find clumps of hair missing and lumps on her head but that she had never spoken about these with the complainant.

The jury was also told that Haldane had previous convictions for unrelated violent offences.

In his defence, Haldane had told the jury that he did not recognise the events that had been described in court. He admitted that the pair had rowed verbally but said that the rapes had never happened and sex had been consensual.

Haldane's brother said that he had believed that there were no issues between the defendant and the complainant. Haldane's partner of 15 years said that she had never experienced any sexual violence at his hands.

The defence counsel also claimed there had been collusion between the complainant and other witnesses, and that no allegations had been made until many years after the events were said to have happened.

A jury of 10 women and two men took three hours to return not guilty verdicts on all five charges and Haldane, wearing a blue suit, clasped his hands in the air when the verdicts were delivered.

He declined to comment to our reporter following the verdicts.