A 49-year-old man found hiding under a former work colleague’s bed has been cleared of breaking into her home.

Geoffrey Taylor, of Sidney Road, Gillingham, was also cleared by a jury at Maidstone Crown Court on Friday of spiking a bottle of wine in the woman’s fridge.

It had been alleged that Mr Taylor, who is married with three children, let himself into the house for sexual purposes.

Catherine Donnelly, prosecuting, told the court Mr Taylor had "lay in wait" having put drugs in the wine and intending "to do something to her".

But he maintained during his evidence that he had no intention of sexually assaulting the woman, who canot be identified for legal reasons, and had not spiked her drink.

Describing his family life as "pretty dreadful," he said he had gone to the woman’s house because he did not want to go home. On an earlier occasion he had changed the woman’s locks and had a key cut for himself without her knowledge in case he needed "a place of refuge".

On the evening of February 2 last year Mr Taylor let himself in. "I did wonder what I was doing there," he said. "I wasn’t 100 percent sure it was a good idea."

Mr Taylor said he had checked beforehand that she would be out for the evening but panicked when she returned home and decided to hide under her bed.

He denied trespass with intent to commit a sexual offence and administering a substance. He was cleared of both charges.

The court heard the wine contained traces of diphenhydramine, which caused drowsiness. Combined with alcohol, the effect was stronger.

Mr Taylor and the woman had met while working at the same company in Northfleet and became friends. Mr Taylor often helped out with odd jobs.

The woman told the court she was about to go to bed when she spotted something underneath it. She said she bent down and touched it and was shocked to find it was a foot.

The woman said she then told the "intruder" to come out. "I had been in the house 45 minutes to an hour," she said. "That’s when I noticed something sticking out from under the bed. I got a bit of a sick feeling.

"I bent down and touched it and it moved. It was a black sock and a foot. I never put anything under the bed. I am a tidy person.

"I stood back. I didn’t have a clue who it was. I was very frightened. I said: ‘Who are you? Come out and show your face.

"He came out and said: ‘It’s me, it’s me.’ It was Geoff Taylor. I was frightened and scared."

She asked him what he was doing and then told him to get out. He sat on the sofa downstairs and appeared shocked.

"I asked him why he was under my bed," said the woman. "It is not normal behaviour. He said: ‘I didn’t mean to frighten you. I am sorry.’

Mr Taylor told her that he could not go home. She again told him to get out. "I was in shock," she continued. "It made me feel frightened, scared, sick....I went into the kitchen and broke down in tears on the kitchen floor. I then realised it was time for me to dial 999."

On arriving home the woman said he had poured a glass of wine from the opened bottle in the fridge.

"I noticed it was a bit cloudy but didn’t taste anything," she said. "When the glass was empty, there was white powder in the bottom."

The woman also told the jury that Mr Taylor, whom she described as "just a friend" had sent her text messages calling her "Sexy bum". He also gave her black fluffy handcuffs and edible knickers on Valentine’s Day in 2004.

"I didn’t think it was right," she said. "It made me feel sick."

In his evidence Mr Taylor said he was sitting in the living room when the woman’s car pulled up.

"I immediately ran upstairs, into the front bedroom, and looked out of the window.

"I heard the front door opening and I just panicked and hid under the bed. The lights came on and I heard someone downstairs," he said. "I suppose I couldn’t pluck up the courage to come out, so I stayed there. Perhaps I would creep out later.

"The door opened. I was still under the bed. I assumed she was getting changed. She left and came back again. I felt something hit my foot and then I heard her shouting, so I came out from under the bed. She was very scared. I tried to calm her down."

He did not try to sexually touch her in any way, he said. "I just kept saying I was sorry; that I didn’t mean to frighten her."

He gave her back her front door key when she asked for it and left.

Asked if he had put any drugs in the bottle of wine, he replied: "Definitely not."

He added: "She wasn’t supposed to be coming home at all.

When asked about the texts messages Mr Taylor said they were meant as a joke. "I didn’t mean anything by that," he explained. "It’s just the sort of thing I do; text other people, jokey things like that, really."

And he added that the Valentine’s gifts were sent to her because she was dating a police officer at the time. "Neither the handcuffs nor the knickers were meant as a romantic gesture," he said.

On a previous occasion when the woman had let him stay at her house she said she woke to find him in her room. But Mr Taylor denied making any sexual advances, saying he had gone to her window to check his motorcycle wasn’t being stolen.