British rapper and social media star Yung Filly will have a chance at a retrial over three rape charges in Australia which remain unresolved from a reported sexual assault on a woman after a show in Perth in September 2024. The development comes after a jury in Western Australia reached verdicts on some of the rape charges after an eight-day trial, but could not agree on a majority on three of the charges. The retrial will be a new hearing, with the charges not resolved at the previous trial, and will be heard in the Australian legal system.
Yung Filly (born Andres Felipe Valencia Barrientos) is 30 years old and is a well-known entertainer, rapper and online personality. At the time of the alleged incident he had been in Australia on a music tour. The entertainer has refused to accept the claims and is free on bail pending investigation.
The first trial was held in the District Court of Western Australia in Perth and lasted eight days. Prosecutors during the trial made claims about an interaction Barrientos had with a woman at the time who was 20 years old. There were six counts of rape and other counts of physical assault.
After deliberating, the jury issued a split verdict. Barrientos was convicted of assaulting the woman on two counts, in each case causing bodily harm. Meanwhile, he was acquitted of a choking charge, and found not guilty of three of the six rape charges.
But the jury failed to muster a supermajority on the final three rape counts. The legal system used in the case requires a jury to have a certain level of consensus in order to record a verdict. These three allegations were not met and so were not considered convictions or acquittals.
The difference is significant because it is not a conviction, it is a failure to reach a verdict. The three outstanding allegations may thus be again considered on a new trial. Now the prosecution has confirmed that a retrial will be held on the charges and the legal wrangle will continue.
The centre is accused of mistreating a woman who claims to have suffered sexual abuse.Prosecutor Danielle Clarke told Judge Linda Black that the woman at the centre of the allegations was willing to give evidence again if the case went back to trial. Her name is redacted as she is the alleged victim of a sexual offence. When a person decides to give evidence again, the prosecution will get a chance to present their case again and the defence will also be given a chance to argue the defence case and to challenge the prosecution case and evidence again according to the rules of the court.
The judge has also requested attorneys to think about some procedural issues before the retrial is conducted. These include whether any other judge should preside over the hearing of the new trial, and, if a jury, whether it should be composed of a jury or of a judge presiding without one. These decisions can have a notable effect on the way a retrial is carried out, but do not affect the outcome of the charges.
So far, no date has been set for the retrial. This will be coordinated with the court’s scheduling and at the further stages of the litigation. The three rape allegations are still pending, and should not be considered as facts, until the retrial is finished.
The outstanding charges stem from an alleged incident in a hotel room in Perth following an Australian tour in which Barrientos was performing. Prosecutors say the woman originally agreed to sex, but then rescinded her consent after fearing for her life. The case against the prosecution is about what occurred after that and whether the conduct was to the extent that it was rape under Australian law.
Barrientos was arrested several days after the alleged incident in Brisbane. His arrest was at the tail end of his Australian tour. Prior to him travelling to Perth, he did several shows in Sydney and Melbourne. Barrientos’ profile as a performer and social media figure also came into focus for the case.
Although the case was serious, Barrientos has not been sent to prison because of the convictions obtained in the first trial. He also had the right to come back to Britain for a few months, during the Australian proceedings. His absence in Australia while he is part of the prosecution does not mean that the case has been dropped, but that he was placed on bail with conditions.
The next step will be to narrow in on the three rapes on which the original jury was deadlocked. The two assault sentences will also continue to be part of the main trial, and will be issued after the retrial is completed. The new trial might thus carry even more ramifications for Barrientos’ case.
In addition, the case emphasizes the challenges that may be faced in a sexual offense trial, especially where different jurors may find different facts in relation to separate offenses stemming from an identical incident. A mixed verdict may be indicative of various aspects of the evidence and the several charges and an unresolved charge may lead to further proceedings in court, not to a final determination by the jury on the charge.
