Daniel Menzel: Former Sydney Swans, Geelong Cats player cleared of alleged sexual offence in Bondi home

A former Sydney Swans and Geelong Cats footballer has been cleared in court after pleading not guilty to sexually touching a woman without consent. Find out why.

A former AFL player has been cleared of an alleged sexual offence after a night out in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

Daniel Menzel, who previously played for the Geelong Cats and Sydney Swans, previously pleaded not guilty to two counts of sexually touching a woman without consent in his Bondi Beach home on November 22, 2019

The 30-year-old told Downing Centre Local Court he met the woman at Bedouin nightclub in Double Bay.

They chatted and danced for a while before moving on to the Bondi Hotel and later to his house.

In her evidence, the complainant said the last thing she remembered before blacking out was talking to Mr Menzel in front of the Bedouin, a court heard.

Daniel Menzel leaving Downing Centre Court. Picture: Damian Shaw.

The woman told the court the next thing she remembered was waking up with Mr Menzel kissing her.

But Mr Menzel told the court the complainant’s demeanour completely changed soon after they arrived at his home.

Daniel Menzel once played for the Sydney Swans. Picture: David Mariuz.

“She said ‘who are you, I don’t know who you are, I don’t know what’s going on,’ I said ‘okay, what’s happening?’ and she said ‘I don’t know where I am’,” Mr Menzel said.

Mr Menzel told the court this “incident” lasted for a minute or so before she snapped out of it and apologised, adding she did remember him and their night together.

The pair then talked about the night for another 10 minutes or so before they started kissing, a court heard.

While they were kissing, Mr Menzel said she “flicked a switch again” and questioned who he was, pushing him off her.

The court heard a stunned Menzel tried to calm her down again but she said “you’re a liar, you’ve drugged me and you’re trying to rape me”.

“I got really upset and I said ‘you’re a psycho, get out of my house, I’ve had enough,’ and then she left my house,” Mr Menzel said.

Daniel Menzel playing in the SANFL. Picture: David Mariuz.

Today, at Downing Centre Local Court, Magistrate Michael Crompton said he was not satisfied the charges against Menzel could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

“There are aspects of (the complainant’s) evidence which are troubling,” Mr Crompton said.

The first aspect Mr Crompton raised was the complainant’s belief she had been given a date rape drug, even though this was not proved in subsequent tests.

Mr Crompton also told the court by 3am the complainant had consumed the equivalent of 15 standard drinks and taken the illicit drug MDMA, which would have affected her cognitive state.

He also raised discrepancies in the complainant’s recollection of events.

“(The complainant) does not recall sending text messages, but can recall what happened in Daniel’s bedroom,” he said.

Mr Crompton also pointed to CCTV footage from the night which showed the complainant being affectionate towards Mr Menzel.

“At one point, on Campbell Parade, Daniel lifts (the complainant) and swings her, which could be a reason behind the DNA transference,” Mr Compton said.

In a statement released after the verdict, Mr Menzel maintained his innocence and thanked everyone who had supported him.

“Whilst I believed the truth would come out in the trial, living with these false allegations for such an extended period of time has been traumatic for both myself and those close to me,” he said.