England Lionesses rising star Khiara Keating has pleaded not guilty at a hearing over her alleged possession of nitrous oxide, commonly known as 'hippie crack'.
The 20-year-old was previously arrested in June after she was allegedly caught with the Class C drug during an incident that month following an investigation.
Keating has now appeared at Manchester and Salford magistrates court after being charged with possession of the substance and could face a range of sanctions varying in severity if found guilty.
The Man City star appeared in the court dock on Tuesday where she was supported by her mum Nicola who is also facing the same charge as her daughter over the substance possession.
The pair have now rejected the charges and claim that friends of Keating had been the ones using canisters that the regulated substance comes in at a party while she was away.
Defending Mr Isaac Mirza revealed that Keating was involved in a car crash in June that prompted two attending police officers to believe that the Lionesses shot-stopper was potentially under the influence of a drug.
Police then uncovered the 'hippy crack' canisters in Keating's car when they conducted a search, only for Nicola Keating to arrive on the scene claiming the canisters actually belonged to her.
Mr Mirza said: 'We are going to be saying that there was no possession. Khiara never possessed those items. Khiara's fingerprints will not be on the items.
'A party takes place in Khiara's house when Khiara was on holiday. Her mother discovered the party and she closes the party down.
He added: 'It is other youngsters misusing her trust by accessing her property while she was away.
'There was no safe place to put these items apart from Khiara's car. Nicola even went to the local recycling centre to see how these items could be disposed of in a safe way.'
Keating is now due back in court on November 17th 2025 when a trial expecting to last a day-and-a-half will get underway.
