FORMER PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL coach Barry Bennell has been charged with a further 21 alleged sexual assaults on boys aged between 14 and 16.

The ex-Crewe Alexandra coach will appear at South Cheshire Magistrates’ Court, via video link, next Wednesday 17 May in relation to 18 counts of indecent assault, two counts of buggery and one count of attempted buggery.

The charges against the 63-year-old relate to four complainants. The offences allegedly took place between 1983 and 1991.

Today’s development brings the number of charges against Bennell to 41. There are now a total of eight complainants – all of whom were teenagers at the time of the alleged assaults.

A file relating to the original allegations was received by the Crown Prosecution Service in the UK (CPS) on 27 September 2016. Following a review of the evidence, Bennell was charged on 29 November with eight offences.

On 7 March this, the coach was informed that he was charged with a further eight counts of non-recent child sexual abuse including five counts of buggery with a boy aged under 16, two counts of indecent assault on a boy aged under 14 and an indecent assault on a boy aged under 16.

On 9 March, Bennell was again charged with four counts of indecent assaults on a boy aged 11 to 12 years. The alleged offences took place between 1981 and 1982.

He is next due to appear at Chester Crown Court on 3 July in relation to those 20 charges.

In a statement today, a spokesperson for the CPS reminded “all concerned that criminal proceedings against Mr Bennell are live and that he has a right to a fair trial”.

It is extremely important that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice ongoing proceedings.

Comments have been disabled as legal proceedings are ongoing.