Fan cleared of cup final attack

Jonathan Edmonds always denied the charges

A Tottenham Hotspur fan has been cleared of an attack on a female Leicester City supporter at last year's Worthington Cup final.

Jonathan Edmonds, 31, of Slough, Berkshire, was cleared on charges of affray and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

The prosecution at Harrow Crown Court had alleged that Mr Edmonds punched 30-year-old Ruth Lelacheur in the head while she was watching the showcase match at Wembley Stadium last March.

The court was told Mrs Lelacheur suffered bruising to the back of the ear and damage to her teeth in the attack.

Mr Edmonds had gone to police on 31 March after a picture which appeared to show him throwing a punch at Mrs Lelacheur was shown on the BBC Crimewatch UK programme.

'Picture was misleading'

He told police that he was the man in the picture, which also appeared in several national newspapers, but that it was a misleading image and that he had not assaulted the Leicester fan.

The Spurs fan said he was pushed to the ground during scuffles between rival fans who had tickets in the same enclosure.

He said he had hit out to defend himself, but did not aim any punches at Miss Lelacheur.

The outbreak of crowd trouble at the final led to an investigation into how Spurs fans had got hold of tickets for the end occupied by opposition supporters.

Mr Edmond's ticket was traced back to Leicester City star Andy Impey, who was one of seven players and officials from the club fined a total of £75,000 last March for selling tickets for the final improperly.