Ward, 28, denied assaulting a woman in a Mercedes in 2023, saying their encounter had been consensual.
A clearly-emotional Michael Ward spoke of having compassion for sex abuse victims and his hope to rebuild his life after a jury cleared him of rape.
The rape charges have had “a profound impact on him and those closest to him”, according to the Bafta-winning star – who has not been able to work since a consensual sexual encounter in 2023 threw his life into turmoil.
On Friday a jury, sitting at east London’s Snaresbrook Crown Court, took five hours and 25 minutes to unanimously find him not guilty of two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration, and one count of sexual assault against the woman on January 2 2023.
Ward, 28, denied assaulting the woman in the back of his friend’s Mercedes, saying their encounter had been consensual and they were “having a great time”.
Ward appeared emotional as he stood next to his solicitor who read a statement after the verdicts.
Speaking outside court, Humzah Ilyas, of Hickman & Rose, said: “It has been three and a half years since the police started investigating this matter, during which time Micheal’s life, as well as his successful career, has been put on hold. This has, inevitably, had a profound impact on him and those closest to him.
“Micheal is thankful this process has now reached a conclusion. He looks forward to getting back to the doing work he loves and focusing on the future.
“As he starts to rebuild his life, Micheal would like to acknowledge those who have experienced sexual violence and abuse. They deserve to be heard, treated with compassion, and have their allegations taken seriously.
“Micheal would like to thank God and his family. He is very appreciative of everyone who stood by him. Their support, prayers and love helped carry him.”
Ward stood quietly in the dock and held his hand to his mouth as the jury foreman slowly announced he was not guilty to each of the charges.
Supporters in the public gallery, which had been packed with family and friends during every day of the trial, held back tears as the verdicts were announced.
Ward then burst in to tears and leaned heavily on his defence lawyer as she helped him out of the courtroom.
Ward’s accuser had told the trial she felt “numb” and “scared” and that “I didn’t really feel like I had a choice”.
The court heard Ward comes from humble beginnings in London’s east end, and was raised in a female-led family after his father died in a car crash when he was two years old.
He found fame with a breakout role in the critically acclaimed Top Boy drama series, won the Bafta rising star honour in 2020 and grafted to gain big screen success alongside star names.
Ward, of Silvertown, east London, met his accuser who was with her friends outside the “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.
Ward told the court he and the woman flirted, had foreplay, enjoyed “passionate” kisses, and that an intimate act between them would not have happened if she did not want it.
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.
Ward 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 said her friends were waiting, and added: “Everything was progressing in a natural, hot way and we were just enjoying it.”
He said he did not force her and they kissed, hugged, had a conversation before she left.
Before 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 “does not deny that what happened 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”.
Ward said he had wanted to see her again, but their contact fizzled out and his busy schedule took over.
Ward 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 told the jury: “The woman has bluntly not been consistent and has told a series of lies that go to the heart of this matter.
“She has told them to the police and she has told them to you.”
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.”
A string of character witnesses also told the court that Ward was “honest and trustworthy”.
Actress Jasmine Jobson, 31, who has thought of Ward like a “brother” since they both appeared in Top Boy, described him as “lovely, polite and outgoing” and “intelligent, hardworking and popular”.
In a court statement, she said she believes Ward’s drive to do well is in order to create a good life for his six-year-old daughter.
She wrote Ward has “put his blood sweat and tears” into his profession and his excellence was reflected in the awards he has received.
She said: “The allegations are in stark contrast to the gentle and kind-hearted man I know.”
