Turkish barman starts retrial

Rachael Lloyd ran away to be with Mehmet Ocak

The Turkish barman jailed for the statutory rape of a north Wales teenager, but later freed on appeal, begins the first stage of his retrial on Thursday.

Mehmet Ocak, 24, was released in July from a jail sentence of more than five years.

Rachael Lloyd - then aged 14 - ran away from her home in Wrexham to marry him in December 2002.

Ocak was jailed in February 2003 after his relationship with Rachael led to an international police hunt.

Waiter Ocak had denied statutory rape and holding a minor by force, claiming he thought the teenager was 15 - the age of consent in Turkey.

The two met while Rachael was on holiday with her grandmother in the coastal resort of Marmaris in 2002.

The couple hit the headlines when Rachael ran away to Turkey - reportedly using a fake passport - and claimed she was engaged to Ocak.

She was found at his home in the city of Gaziantep in south east Turkey after a search by Interpol and Turkish police. She was brought back home by her father, Bob Lloyd.

Rachael - now 15 and still living with her grandmother - flew back to testify at Ocak's trial last year.

Giving evidence, she told the court the holiday romance had not been consummated.

Her father has always maintained he would not allow his daughter to marry the Turkish waiter until she reached the age of 18.