Personal Life
He began a relationship with Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Tweedy in September 2004, when they were living in the same block of flats in London. They married on 15 July 2006 in Wrotham Park, Hertfordshire. In January 2008, the couple almost separated after allegations were made that Cole had affairs with three other women. He, however, disputed the allegations and the couple stayed together. It was announced on 23 February 2010 that the couple would separate following four new allegations of adultery. Three months later, it was announced that Cheryl was filing for divorce. They officially divorced on 3 September 2010.
In 2006, Cole sued the News of the World and The Sun newspapers for libel after they printed allegations that he was involved in a "homosexual orgy". Both papers retracted the allegations. That same year, Cole released an autobiography titled, My Defence, which sold 4,000 copies in the first six weeks of release. Cole's former teammate, Jens Lehmann, criticised Cole for writing an autobiography when he was 25.
Cole has had a couple of minor brushes with the police. On 4 March 2009 he was held after swearing in front of a police officer outside a South Kensington nightclub. He was taken to a police station and issued with an £80 fixed penalty notice before being released. On 4 January 2010, Cole was convicted of a speeding offence committed on 17 November 2009. He was recorded exceeding the speed limit by doing 104 mph in a 50 mph zone on the A3 road in Kingston upon Thames, a residential stretch. His defence at Kingston Magistrates Court, opposing the charge in his absence, argued unsuccessfully that the police speed gun was faulty. Cole also claimed that his actions were excuseable because he was trying to evade the paparazzi. On 29 January he was fined £1000 and disqualified from driving for four months.
On 27 February 2011, Cole accidentally shot a 21-year-old student on work experience with a .22 calibre air rifle, at Chelsea's Cobham training ground. He fired at Tom Cowan, a sports science student, from only five feet away, apparently unaware that the rifle was loaded. Cole has formally apologised to Cowan, and has discussed the incident with Chelsea officials.
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