A Kent police officer has been found not guilty today of sexually assaulting a woman in a bar.

Benjamin Bromley, a constable based at Folkestone, was alleged to have groped her crotch as he hugged her goodbye in The Cuban in Canterbury during a night out in 2021.

He then sent her a "tongue in cheek" apology a few hours later, Canterbury Crown Court was told.

But the 34-year-old from Ashford maintained during his trial that he was "absolutely 100% sure" he had not molested the complainant, who was known to him.

He denied one offence of sexual assault and was acquitted by the jury of six men and six women after deliberations lasting just under two hours.

Mr Bromley cried in the dock as the verdict was announced and could be heard sobbing in the corridor once he had left the courtroom.

He has been suspended from his job since his arrest in January last year.

The court heard the married dad was off-duty at the time of the alleged incident and out with friends, drinking in two bars before reaching The Cuban at around midnight.

It was as he hugged the group goodbye at around 2am that it is claimed he molested the woman by placing his hand around her waist to the small of her back and then moving his hand down to touch her private parts in what one witness described as an "aggressive scooping" motion, said prosecutor Rio Pahlavanpour.

The court heard Mr Bromley sent a message to the woman the next morning after being prompted by one of his friends telling him via text of the alleged groping and that he 'may owe her an apology'.

In his message, which was read to the jury by Mr Pahlavanpour, the officer told the woman: "Sorry for last night. I ploughed through the drinks and can't remember from The Cuban lol. Sorry if I sexually assaulted you. xx"

She did not respond to the message and did not report the alleged incident, the court heard.

But it came to the attention of the police professional standards department in January last year.

Mr Bromley was arrested and at his interview gave a prepared statement in which he denied sexual assault.

He later stated there was "a possibility" as he bent down to embrace the complainant his hand had gone below her backside and "unintentionally" made contact with her private parts.

But he maintained he could not recall that happening.

Giving evidence, Mr Bromley told the jury he had first joined Kent Police as a PCSO in October 2017, before training at Kent Police College in August 2020 and "passing out" as a PC in January the following year.

He described himself as "tactile", adding he hugged and kissed both female and male friends.

He said he was "shocked" by his arrest and maintained he was "absolutely 100% sure" he had not intended to sexually assault the woman and could not recall any such contact.

Mr Bromley told the court he had not taken the accusation "seriously" as it was mentioned to him mid-text in a "casual and blase" way.

He added: "I didn't make anything of it at the time because I hadn't done anything. I thought maybe I had brushed up against her...No one had challenged me or spoke to me about it.

"When I said goodbye no one said anything, I didn't see any stress, no one pulled me back."

The court heard he stated to police his apology was "tongue in cheek, hence the lol".

“I didn't make anything of it at the time because I hadn't done anything. I thought maybe I had brushed up against her...”

When asked by his barrister Eva Niculiu about the message, Mr Bromley continued: "I'm not saying sexual assault is a joke...But at the time when something like that gets dropped into a conversation, and no one else has taken it seriously and challenged me, and I know (the complainant)...I thought I would just send that message and we'd move on."

As to how much thought he had given the text and whether he would have sent it if he believed he had done something wrong, he added: "Absolutely none. That is not a serious apology....it's being a bit of a coward sending an apology over text. I would rather see her or speak over the phone."

The constable said he felt "horrible" that the alleged victim believed he had sexually assaulted her.

"I don't know what she thinks I am but I know I am not that person," he told the jury.

In her evidence, the alleged victim described the mood on the night-out as "friendly and fun".

She told the jury she was drunk but could "hold a conversation and stand on her feet".

Describing the moments after Mr Bromley was said to have molested her, the woman recalled: "I remember having to go to the toilet after to readjust myself because (the clothing) I was wearing had been kind of pushed up."

She also told the jury she recalled speaking "almost immediately" to one of the group about what had allegedly happened.

"At the time I felt awful, actually. It did affect me because I remember having that conversation....but also I had had a couple of drinks so wasn't sure if my emotions were heightened or not."

Asked by the prosecutor if she had given her consent to being touched in that manner, the woman replied: "Absolutely not."

During Ms Niculiu's cross-examination, the complainant agreed that when she gave her initial account to police, she had described the alleged incident as lasting "milliseconds" and did not know if it was "deliberate or a mistake".

She also stated she "never for one second thought he would act like this towards me".