THREE women accused of robbing another woman were yesterday found not guilty by jurors after a six-day trial.

The jury at Oxford Crown Court took about an hour to reach a verdict on the women over the alleged attack on Rosalyn Crosnier Bellaistre in a street near her Headington home.

Miss Bellaistre said 49-year-old Diana Reid accused her on December 30 2013 of having sexual relations with Winston Nichol, Reid’s husband, which the complainant denied.

She said Mrs Reid grabbed her hair and coat, punched her once in the face and asked co-defendant Charlotte Marshall, 43, to take hold of Miss Bellaistre’s bag, which she had dropped in the incident.

She said Ms Marshall and Monica Thomas, both of Salesian Gardens, Temple Cowley, then held her and they all kicked her on the floor.

The witness told jurors at the start of the trial on Tuesday last week that Mr Nichol returned the bag at about 4am the next day, but a number of items, including cash, were missing.

There were sobs from the dock and cries of support from the public gallery as the jury, which went out at 10.10am yesterday, returned its verdict.

Ms Thomas said to jurors: “God bless you all.”

Under cross-examination on Friday Mrs Reid claimed that she was punched first by her alleged victim, who gave all of her evidence from behind a screen.

Prosecutor Adam Pearson asked why she answered “no comment” to questions in her interview instead of denying the alleged offences.

He said: “You were waiting to see what the evidence was so you could fit your story around it, weren’t you?”

Mrs Reid, of Morton Road, Islington, denied this allegation, replying: “I don’t have any reason to pretty up things as you have indicated.

“I told my duty solicitor what happened, he told me to go no comment.”

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