Top Boy star Micheal Ward has been found not guilty of raping a woman in the back of his friend's car by a jury. Bafta-winning actor Ward, 28, was cleared of two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of sexual assault against a woman who claimed she was attacked in a Mercedes on January 2, 2023.Speaking outside court, his lawyer Humzah Ilyas said the performer was 'looking forward to getting back to doing the work he loves'.Mr Ilyas added that victims of sexual assault 'deserve to be heard, treated with compassion, and have their allegations taken seriously'.It can now also be reported that an influencer was threatened with contempt of court proceedings after posting inappropriate videos about the trial on social media.The trial, at Snaresbrook Crown Court, heard that Ward met the woman at a nightclub in Stratford, east London, with the pair then heading to an afterparty.Ward then invited her to sit in a friend's Mercedes-Benz where, she had alleged, she was then raped.The woman had told Ward's trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, she felt 'numb' and 'scared', remembered 'wanting it all to be over' and that 'I didn't really feel like I had a choice'. The actor stood in the dock, held his hand to his mouth and sobbed as he was unanimously cleared of all charges following five hours and 25 minutes of deliberation by the jury.Ward, of Silverton, east London, rose to fame in cult Peckham gang war film Blue Story, and gained wider recognition as drug dealer Jamie in the Netflix revival of Channel 4 series Top Boy. Top Boy star Micheal Ward has been found not guilty of raping a woman in the back of a car by a jury Ward rose to fame on the Netflix revival of Channel 4 series Top Boy as Jamie (pictured). The drama explores the world of drug dealers in Hackney, east LondonDuring trial he told the court he and the woman flirted, enjoyed 'passionate' kisses, and that an intimate act between them would not have happened if she did not want it.He met the woman, who was with her friends, outside an 'all-white' party for around 250 people in Gants Hill, east London.He had enjoyed Christmas with his close-knit family and the celebration was during a break in his busy schedule which included work in Italy and promotion for his soon-to-be released film.She was confident and 'very cute' he said, adding: 'We had a mutual attraction with each other. We engaged in consensual sex, had a great time and she was actively participating in what we were doing all the time.'Ward recalled having a 'quite flirty' conversation with the woman who accepted she was flattered when he asked for her Snapchat details.He told the jury: 'I could tell there was interest there – from her eye contact and the way she was speaking.'He thought he saw her 'once or twice' at the party and got a 'great vibe from her' via the 'nice' and 'flirty' chat they had.As the party ended he unexpectedly got a message from her saying she was waiting by a car.The court heard the pair kissed and hugged in a Mercedes outside the party, and later had an intimate encounter in another Mercedes outside an after party event.He asked her to go into the back seat which she did.The car door was unlocked, she gave no indication she wanted to leave as they kissed again and became involved in a 'developing situation', Ward said.He also told the court: 'I really feel that she wanted to be there. She never mentioned anything about wanting to leave.'Ward recalled the woman had told him her friends were waiting for her.But he claimed he did not force her and added: 'Everything was progressing in a natural, hot way and we were just enjoying it.' Ward later appeared opposite Olivia Colman in Sam Mendes's 2022 drama Empire of LightBefore the woman went to the party she Googled Ward and sent those pictures to her friend, the court heard.Prosecutor Tracy Ayling KC noted the woman admitted she thinks Ward is 'attractive' and did not deny that kissing and hugging Ward in the first car was 'consensual'.The prosecution's case was that Ward was 'bent that night on having sex with her come what may' and suggested she had no motivation to say she was raped if it had not happened.Her friends broke down in tears in court as they recalled 'her demeanour was off' when she got back into the car for their return journey home and she ordered an STI kit during the drive back.The woman said she exchanged some friendly messages with Ward following the incident because she 'had not fully come to terms with what had actually happened to her'.Ward said he had wanted to see her again but their contact fizzled out and his busy schedule took over.He said he was 'shocked' when he was arrested at the airport as he returned from Italy, adding: 'I knew that I had not done anything wrong and wanted to get the bottom of it.'Defence counsel Sallie Bennett-Jenkins KC claimed in court that the woman 'has bluntly not been consistent' in her account and that she 'told a series of lies'.'She has told them to the police and she has told them to you,' she added.It took 18 months from her original interview with police before the woman reported having deleted parts of messages with Ward, and it came to light as investigators asked her friends for screenshots of their chats, the court heard.The woman said she had blood on her clothing, but tests found nothing and she 'flipped one way and then the other' about whether there had been flirting, the KC said.Ms Bennett-Jenkins told the jury: 'There are three, at the very least, significant areas where the woman can be demonstrated not to have told the truth.'Is that a witness upon who you can rely? I suggest not.' Ward – who appeared in Eddington last year (pictured) – now wants to 'get back to doing the work he loves', his lawyer said todayThe court was also told of Ward's upbringing in a female-led family after his father died in a car crash when he was two years old.Following the conclusion of the case on Friday, it can now be reported that influencer Murad Merali was threatened with contempt of court proceedings after he shared updates on the trial online.Merali had approached members of the actor's family outside court and allegedly filmed videos within the grounds of the east London courthouse – which can be a criminal offence – within earshot of jurors.He also used loaded language to describe the court proceedings, claiming Ward's defence barrister 'hammered in' with questions to his accuser during cross-examination.Judge Rosa Dean confronted him on July 3 and told him to delete his posts and leave the building, or face potential prosecution after the videos were flagged to the Attorney General, Lord Hermer KC.She took the extraordinary step of clearing the public gallery for parts of the trial for fear that other content creators would make videos that could unduly influence the jury.Only accredited members of the media and family members were allowed to attend. The judge also imposed additional restrictions to ensure Ward's accuser was not identified.When Mr Merali told the court he was 'profusely' sorry, the judge told him: 'I am absolutely determined to make sure that nothing disrupts this trial.' But the influencer and property investor, who is not a qualified journalist, claimed he wanted to 'report every single day' of the trial in a video he shared today.In a video uploaded today, Merali said he was told of his videos: 'I was told because of the high traction it gained, the jurors could have seen them.'The jurors, all of them, thought this man was not guilty. And I believe because of the cross-examination that I did report on, and further on that the jurors saw this and looked and thought differently.' Who is Micheal Ward? Micheal Ward made his name as one of the stars of cult hit Blue Story in 2019, based on a real life gang war in South London.The same year, he appeared in the Netflix revival of Channel 4 series Top Boy, which revolves around drug dealers in Hackney in the east of the Capital. His first on-screen appearance was in the 2016 film Brotherhood. His early flurry of eye-catching roles saw him awarded the Rising Star prize at the Bafta Film Awards in 2020.Ward then appeared in the BBC's Small Axe in 2021 and the 2022 film Empire Of Light, for which he received best supporting actor nods from Bafta, before appearing in the fourth series of Top Boy.Once touted as a future James Bond, Ward modelled for Burberry and gave a reading at the Christmas Eve carol service hosted by the Princess of Wales in 2023.He also played in the Soccer Aid match at Stamford Bridge in 2024, the same year he shared the screen with Bill Nighy in Netflix football drama The Beautiful Game.Last year, he appeared opposite Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal in neo-Western thriller Eddington, and was attached to Uncle, a 'revenge thriller' directed by Joe Marcantonio, prior to being charged.According to a British Council listing of UK films in production, Ward remains attached to the film in a lead role.