A MAN accused of raping an unconscious woman has been found not guilty, but could face a retrial over an attempted rape claim.

Jing Jiang denied committing both offences against the young woman in Brighton after they had met at the Shooshh nightclub.

The woman and her friend, who cannot be named for legal reasons, bought ketamine from the 45-year-old.

Later they went in his car to a “secluded spot” overlooking East Brighton, Hove Crown Court heard.

The friend of the woman reported waking up in the front passenger seat and seeing Mr Jiang attempting to rape her on the back seat.

Later after driving the friend home it was claimed he took the woman back to a flat above the China Inn takeaway in Portland Road in May 2016.

She claimed she woke up to find him having sex with her while she was asleep. But the defendant claimed they had consensual sex.

Prosecutors said he sent a voice note in Cantonese to a friend about having sex with a woman who was “unconscious”. He told police that what he meant to say was that the woman was “high” on drugs.

At Hove Crown Court, Sean Sullivan cross-examined the woman, asking her about her previous drug use when she was younger and whether knew the different effects of either cocaine or ketamine.

She believed she had taken cocaine, not the class B sedative ketamine. She told the court she could not remember anything after taking ketamine for the second time that night until she woke up in the flat in Portland Road.

“What was the effect on you?” Mr Sullivan asked.

“I don’t know, I don’t remember, it was a long time ago,” the woman replied.

The barrister asked the woman if she had ever experienced memory loss because of her use of alcohol and drugs.

“I do have forgetfulness, but not because of alcohol or drugs,” she said.

Mr Sullivan said that she was “affectionate” to his client with “kissing and cuddling” in the car.

He said that later she was conscious enough to walk up the stairs, take her shoes off outside the door, and take her clothes off. Mr Sullivan said: “Is it that you were unconscious, or that you don’t remember being conscious?”

“I think I would have remembered,” the woman replied.

“But you don’t know that, it is possible you can’t remember?” Mr Sullivan asked.

“Yes,” the woman said.

Mr Jiang was found not guilty of raping her in the flat.

But the jury could not reach a unanimous or majority decision about whether Mr Jiang, formerly of Surrey Street, Littlehampton, had attempted to rape her in the car.

The case is understood to be listed for a review later this month.