Shropshire Star

Karate instructor cleared of sex assaults at retrial

Andrew Sherry, 82, was jailed last year but his convictions were overturned following an appeal.

By contributor Eleanor Barlow, PA
Published
Supporting image for story: Karate instructor cleared of sex assaults at retrial
The retrial was heard at Liverpool Crown Court (Dave Thompson/PA)

A karate instructor who was jailed for sexually assaulting teenage boys has been cleared of all charges at a retrial.

Andrew Sherry, a founder member of the Karate Union of Great Britain (KUGB), was found guilty following a trial in March 2024 of indecently assaulting one boy, under the age of 16, in the mid-1980s, and of four counts of sexual assault on an older teenager in 2011 or 2012.

The trial heard the 82-year-old, a ninth dan black belt, founded the Red Triangle karate club in Everton, Liverpool, and achieved “prominence and standing” in the sport, before he retired in March 2022 after a police investigation was launched.

His convictions were quashed by the Court of Appeal in September and a retrial was ordered.

The jury in Mr Sherry’s retrial found him not guilty on all five counts last week, a Liverpool Crown Court spokesman said.

At his sentencing last May, Tania Griffiths KC, representing Mr Sherry, said: “He has lost everything by these convictions.

“He’s lost his good name, lost his reputation and lost his world standing.”