A MARRIED man has been cleared at Worcester Crown Court of indecently assaulting a 13-year-old girl.
A jury took less than an hour to acquit Michael Dalziel, 38, of Holman Street, Kidderminster, on two charges alleging assaults between December 31 last year and April 1 this year.
Dalziel, stock controller for a steel merchant, was arrested after the girl, who was being ticked off by a teacher for poor work, claimed she had been sexually abused.
He told the court that he could give no explanation for the allegations she had made. He had cuddled her but there had been no indecency.
A girl of 16, who had been a babysitter for the family, gave evidence that she felt "completely safe" when she was alone with Dalziel.
His sister-in-law, mother-of-three Dawn Priest, said she was happy for him to be with her children.
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