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Tennis coach father cleared of cruelty Tennis coach father John De'Viana cleared of cruelty
(35 minutes later)
Tennis coach John De'Viana found not guilty of cruelty to his daughters who he wanted to become stars A tennis coach father who was accused of abusing his daughters in a bid to make them champions of Wimbledon has been cleared of mistreating them.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. John De'Viana, 54, was alleged to have beaten and verbally abused his two daughters Monaei and Nephe after they failed to meet his expectations.
If you want to receive Breaking News alerts via email, or on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App then details on how to do so are available on this help page. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on Twitter to get the latest alerts. He said the claims were fabricated because he separated from their mother.
Jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court unanimously cleared him of two counts of child abuse after a two-week trial.
Mr De'Viana, a former karate champion from Ilford, east London, said his relationship with his daughters had suffered after he walked out on their mother, Michelle Horne, in 2011.
Under his guidance the girls became among the country's brightest tennis talents, with the younger sister, Nephe, even appearing alongside Andy Murray on a Lawn Tennis Association advert.
But they quit the sport shortly after he left, despite having a future on court, jurors were told.
Monaei, 21, told the court: "He was always coach, he was never actually dad. He was awful to me."
The court was told that when she was aged about nine or 10, Mr De'Viana wrote "L for Loser" on her face during a training session and then locked her in a caravan.
Her sister Nephe, 19, also accused her father of violent and intimidating behaviour towards her.
Mr De'Viana admitted that as his girls improved in the sport, the fun appeared to wane.
He told jurors: "I began to understand the crossover line between coach and father. I felt that Monaei and I weren't enjoying all the fun things that we used to do."
He added: "As a father and a coach there was a fine line and I was already struggling to stay on balance."