A soldier has been cleared of molesting a young woman after she was ejected from a nightclub by bouncers because she appeared to be drunk.

James Walpole had been acquitted almost a year ago of raping the teenager and the jury could not reach a verdict on a sexual assault charge.

A retrial was ordered and now the 22-year-old married father has been found not guilty at Maidstone Crown Court of the sexual assault charge.

The jury of eight women and four men was not told of the rape acquittal and the judge disallowed the evidence of witnesses at the previous trial who claimed they saw Walpole having intercourse with the woman.

Walpole, of King’s Bastion, Gillingham, denied the charge, claiming the woman consented to sexual activity.

He was alleged to have followed the 19-year-old out of the former Liquid & Envy at Lockmeadow in Maidstone and started talking to her and her friend as they sat on the steps of the cinema.

CCTV film footage showed Walpole picking up the woman and carrying her with her legs dangling to a nearby car park, where he was alleged to have molested her.

Prosecutor Michael Riley told the previous trial the woman was like a “lifeless sack”.

She went to the club with friends in January last year and bought three double vodka and Red Bull drinks.

“She went to the toilet,” said Mr Riley. “Shortly after that she remembers coming over all funny. She was held up by others.

“She rang her boyfriend and said she wanted to go home. Things got a bit worse and she felt blurry. She next remembers bouncers telling her she had too much to drink. They took her out.”

She was sitting on the steps of the Odeon cinema with her friend when Walpole, based at Invicta Park Barracks in the town, approached.

“She recalls someone trying to touch her,” said the prosecutor. “The next thing she remembers is being in an ambulance.”

Mr Riley said it was alleged Walpole carried the woman to the nearby car park next to the David Lloyd gym, put her on the ground and sexually assaulted her.

“The Crown say she was in no fit state to consent,” he added.

Walpole said he was “on a break” from his wife at the time he went to the nightclub with mates.

He said he could not recall seeing the woman inside the club. He remembered leaving and going outside.

“I remember walking behind a girl,” he continued. “I remember sitting on the steps talking to two girls. One went inside to use the toilet. I think it was just general chit-chat.

“There was no sexual activity at that point. She was drunk but not to the point of being paralytic or unconscious.”

Walpole said he had watched the CCTV footage outside the club eight or nine times and now agreed he had picked up the woman and carried her to the car park.

“I can’t remember why it happened,” he said. “We sat down. She came on to me. We kissed. She put her hand in my top. I undid my belt and she put her hand down my trousers.”

He claimed they then performed sex acts on each other.

“I don’t remember anyone else approaching,” he said. “All I can remember is someone shouting that her lift was here. I took that to be that she was going home. I asked for her mobile number.

“I walked back towards Liquid & Envy through the car park. It was not long before I started to move away.”

He added he went towards the town centre and was arrested soon afterwards. He agreed to provide DNA samples and was interviewed.

“I didn’t have a solicitor because I believed I hadn’t done anything wrong,” he said.

Asked if he deliberately took advantage of the woman, he replied: “I didn’t.”