Rugby player found guilty of rape

A rugby player was facing a jail sentence today after being convicted by a jury of raping a woman in a Shropshire alleyway.Watisoni Waqa Leqeti, who played for Newport Rugby Club, was found guilty by unanimous decision at Shrewsbury Crown Court yesterday.

He was remanded in custody by Judge Robin Onions for sentencing on a date to be fixed next month.

The jury heard that Fijian-born Leqeti, 28, formerly of Newport but now living in Stoke-on-Trent, had raped the woman in an alley in Newport in the early hours of February 24, 2004. He had denied the charge.

During the three-day trial, the jury heard the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been for a night out with a friend when they had met Leqeti.

They all went back to her friend's flat where they listened to music until the early hours of the morning. The woman told the jury that when she left, Leqeti walked with her to an alleyway, pushed her to the ground and raped her.

Leqeti, who came to Britain in 2001 to join the Army, claimed the woman had consented and had even initiated the incident.

He had stood trial for rape on two previous occasions. An initial conviction was overturned on appeal after it was revealed his translator had not given an accurate interpretation of his evidence.

A second trial earlier this year had to be called off when one of the barristers fell ill.

Judge Onions asked for a victim impact statement and a pre-sentence report to be prepared and warned Leqeti to expect a custodial sentence.