UK rapper Yung Filly found not guilty of some charges of raping Australian fan
Updated . First published at
A British musician and media personality on trial for violently raping a fan in a Perth hotel has been acquitted of three of the six charges of sexual penetration that he faced.
But the jury found rapper Yung Filly guilty of two assault offences over his September 2024 encounter with a 20-year-old woman after a show.
British rapper Yung Filly, whose real name is Andres Felipe Valencia Barrientos. AAP Image/Aaron Bunch
The 30-year-old, legally known as Andres Felipe Valencia Barrientos, had pleaded not guilty to all 10 charges and faced an eight-day trial in the West Australian District Court, attended by dozens of the performer's young fans.
Barrientos was acquitted on Friday of three of six counts of sexually penetrating the woman without consent.
Not guilty verdicts were also returned for one charge of impeding the woman’s breathing by applying pressure to her neck and one count of assault occasioning bodily harm.
But the media personality was found guilty of two counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, related to biting the woman's neck, cheek and breast during the sexual encounter.
The jury was hung on three sexual penetration counts, with the case due to return to court at a later date.
Barrientos, whose bail was continued until that August 21 mention, was on his first tour of Australia when he met the woman.
The tour opened in Perth before moving to Queensland, where he was arrested and extradited to WA.
Jurors heard the pair met in a nightclub VIP area in Perth's northern suburbs after Barrientos performed there.
The woman told the court Barrientos, who was enjoying a growing music and media career, was her idol and that she loved him and wanted him to be her future husband.
She and the entertainer initially had consensual sex in the hotel.
Prosecutors said Barrientos got aggressive during intercourse after the woman spotted him pointing his phone in her direction and asked if he was recording her.
Barrientos, whose bail was continued until that August 21 mention, was on his first tour of Australia when he met the woman. 9News
The alleged assault started with the rapper repeatedly biting the woman’s face and neck.
Barrientos was also accused of biting the woman's breasts, allegedly causing an open bite wound on her right breast and bruising.
It was also alleged that Barrientos choked and repeatedly slapped the woman on the face.
It was at this point that prosecutors said consensual sex stopped, triggering six counts of sexual penetration without consent.
Barrientos admitted while giving evidence to biting the woman without consent.
He called them love bites and said they involved sucking and tongue movements and his teeth came into contact with the woman's skin.
Barrientos also said the sex was great and the woman grunted and moaned "in a good way".
Photos of the woman with extensive bruising to her face and neck and a bite wound on her right breast were shown to the court.
The trial has halted the career of the Colombia-born South London singer and comedian.
As Yung Filly, he has featured in the BBC's celebrity version of Bake Off and presented light entertainment programs including dating show Hot Property.
Those appearances helped grow a large following across TikTok (3 million followers), YouTube (1.8 million subscribers) and Spotify (850,000 monthly listeners).
During the trial, some of Barrientos’ fans posted images illegally recorded inside the courtroom on TikTok, prompting Judge Linda Black to ban them from the main courtroom.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).
– AAP
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