SPRINGFIELD (AP) - One of two Saudi Arabian nationals accused of kidnapping a woman from a southwest Missouri nightclub and sexually assaulting her has been found not guilty, with a judge ruling there was no evidence she had sex with either of the men or was held against her will.
Ahmed Alanazi, 27, was tried last month by Greene County Circuit Judge Calvin Holden after waiving his right to a jury trial. After the bench trial, the judge reviewed hours of surveillance video from the night of the alleged kidnapping before announcing his ruling Monday.
The woman testified in court that Alanazi and Rayan Alqabbaa, 22, dragged her from Zan nightclubon June 1, 2013, against her will, took her to an apartment and sexually assaulted her. A cab driver who drove the three to an apartment complex flagged down a police officer and reported what he suspected was the kidnapping of a drugged woman.
The woman, Holden ruled, "does believe something did happen to her that night. However, the court finds (she) cannot reliably say what happened or who may have done something to her."
Alanazi and Alqabbaa have been free on bond since December, when the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia posted a combined $2 million.
During their trial, Alanazi's attorney, Dee Wampler, questioned what he called the woman's changing testimony. The woman maintained her memory was improving since the night police found her in an apartment with Alqabbaa.
The woman said she believes she was given a drugged drink that contributed to her inability to remember what was happening or effectively fight back.
But Wampler suggested the 100-pound woman was impaired because she had consumed a dozen drinks over a seven-hour period, according to testimony, and because she was taking Percocet prescribed to her after giving birth through a cesarean section barely two weeks earlier.
The woman confirmed that she had been drinking against her doctor's orders.
Holden's ruling says the court found no evidence Alanazi was "anything other than polite to (the woman)" and "the only evidence the court has, is the testimony of (the woman). (She) had consumed too much alcohol to remember how much she really drank. (She) had taken Percocet. (She) fell down while walking to Zan."
Wampler said surveillance video shows the woman going into an apartment near Zan with several people and coming out 20 minutes later, mostly unable to walk.
Prosecuting Attorney Dan Patterson said his staff is disappointed in the verdict and they "disagree with the court's interpretation of the facts."
Wampler said it was a "difficult and complicated case and Ahmed Alanazi appreciates the court's decision."
Alqabbaa is scheduled to go to trial next month.