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exclusive by Paul Hooper
A Dover man accused of kidnapping a teenager at gunpoint walked free from court after it was revealed his accuser is suspected of being a manipulative fantasist.
Wayne Morley, 33, from Crabble Hill had denied charges that he and a friend tied up 19-year-old Connor Huntley after abducting him using an imitation firearm.
But after the teenager had finished giving his evidence, the trial at Canterbury Crown Court was dramatically halted when the prosecution called for his acquittal.
Trevor Wright, proseucting, told a stunned jury new evidence had been discovered which called into serious question Huntley being regarded as "a witness of truth".
The barrister revealed the teenager – a self-confessed thief who stole £4,000 university savings from his best friend – is at the centre of allegations that he:
Mr Wright told the court: "We have a complainant whose background is so questionable and who is regarded by some as a manipulative young man.
"I don't try to guess what his motive might be but the Crown cannot be certain that what he said (about the kidnapping and gun) is true."
The court heard there is "a marker" on police files – an official warning to officers – that Huntley has made unsubstantiated allegations of "inappropriate touching".
The teenager, in his evidence to the jury, denied ever making the allegations – but he did admit plotting with others to steal the savings of best friend Sinead Shepherd.
He told how he used two female friends to trick the innocent teenager into leaving her bag at Dover College – when her house key was stolen.
Huntley then went to her home and stole the money, which also included funds for a trip to Uganda to help the needy.
"we have a complainant whose background is so questionable and who is regarded by some as a manipulative young man" – prosecutor trevor wright
It was revealed later that Ms Shepherd was left so broke she was unable to travel to university for her interview the following day and was later forced out of her lodgings.
Huntley told the jury he had taken the money and shared it with three friends and used his share on clothes for himself, including a pink hoodie.
Mr Wright added: "There is also a man who lived at an address in Folkestone currently on bail awaiting trial on sex offences. Connor Huntley, a former partner of that man, posted comments on Facebook inviting people to ‘f****** kill him'," he added.
The prosecutor said local authority officials had also expressed concern the teenager had made allegations when he couldn't get his own way.
"He has also bragged to friends that he has pictures on his phone – and he has shown them to people – of him posing as a woman on the internet and encouraging men to send him nude or pornographic pictures of themselves.
"He then arranges to meet them and if they are married, he says he is going to go to their houses and tell their wives."
The court heard allegations men have handed over cash rather than have their marriages wrecked – and "it is believed he has made a couple of hundred pounds doing this".
The prosecutor told the jury: "It will come as no surprise to you that Huntley has not been charged because not surprisingly no man is going to make a complaint which could lead to his marriage being ruined."
The prosecutor also outlined claims the teenager had acted as a pimp to a 15-year-old girl after supplying her with alcohol and drugs.
Mr Wright said: "Recently the girl's family received nude photographs of her over the internet after he had previously accused her of threatening him with a knife."
The prosecutor added that although the allegations were unproven they had cast serious doubt on the truth about Huntley's claims he was bundled into a taxi in Dover by two men, driven to a field and then had a gun pointed at his head.
Judge Nigel van der Bijl directed the jury to find Mr Morley not guilty of kidnapping and possessing an imitation firearm and he was released.
