A FORMER Hampshire traffic warden cleared of rape after spending two years in prison is suing the woman who claimed he had attacked her.

Anthony Hunt has issued a High Court writ alleging he was the victim of a malicious prosecution by the woman and demanding more than £300,000 in damages.

Mr Hunt, 64, was said to have raped her in July 1995 - but it was seven years before she made a formal complaint.

Throughout his two-week trial at Winchester Crown Court Mr Hunt claimed he was incapable of rape because he had an abnormally small penis which, together with medical problems, meant that intercourse could only be a mutual act.

Mr Hunt was subsequently found guilty and jailed for four years.

Two years later London's Criminal Appeal Court quashed his conviction after hearing new evidence and arguments that the trial judge had misdirected the jury.

The woman, who lives near Southampton, had accused Mr Hunt of raping her after finishing his stint of duty at the 1995 Fordingbridge Show.

His writ says she agreed to have sex with him at her home but later provided police with information she knew to be false.

The writ adds that Mr Hunt faced the fear, anxiety and inconvenience of a groundless prosecution.

It also claims he experienced trauma by being convicted of a "very serious and stigmatising offence" of which he was innocent.

It also says he suffered the loss of his liberty for 23 months and 18 days and experienced the uncertainty of not knowing whether he would ever succeed in clearing his name.