It was the presence of condoms, Viagra and sleeping drugs in the man's suitcase that prosecutors had urged the jury to look at closely.
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They said the Sydney man had drugged the woman that night in a bar in Canberra intending to take her back to their hotel and rape her.
But a jury acquitted Juswan Mokmargana, 46, on Friday of attempted rape, returning its unanimous verdict after four hours deliberating.
Minutes later, the Sydney man pleaded guilty to a charge that had been waiting for the trial to end, of spiking the woman's drink with two tablets of Stilnox while she was away from the table that night.
Mokmargana and the Gold Coast woman, 25, met last year over "sugar daddy" website seekingarrangement.com. He invited her to Canberra for an overnight trip on April 9, 2016.
She told the court this week she had been clear about not wanting a sexual relationship with the man, and agreed to share a bed at the QT Hotel that night as long as he kept his hands to himself.
The woman noticed something strange in her glass when they were drinking at Civic pub King O'Malley's, and alerted the bar staff, who called police. The jury saw surveillance footage of the night in question, and Mokmargana pouring a substance into a glass.
Both he and the woman are seen drinking from the glass.
Discovered in his suitcase in the hotel room later that night was the Viagra, condoms and Stilnox, as well as engagement rings.
Mokmargana faced trial in the ACT Supreme Court this week after pleading not guilty to attempted rape, where prosecutors alleged he drugged her in an attempt to have sex with her without her consent.
But his defence barrister argued the man was consuming the drug himself, and had hoped to get lucky with the woman that night.
The jury asked to be instructed for a second time on Friday by presiding judge Michael Elkaim on the law of crimes of attempt. He told the jury if someone bought a balaclava thinking they might one day rob a bank, that was not enough for conviction. He said jurors had to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt the act was "more than merely preparatory" towards committing the offence.
Guilty plea to drink spiking
After the jury was sent home on Friday the man was charged with an offence transferred from a lower court, of the unauthorised administration of a declared substance, to which he pleaded guilty.
His barrister said in mitigation that Mokmargana was embarrassed by the crime and felt "his behaviour was stupid and he regrets it".
Prosecutors called for a period of imprisonment, arguing the crushed tablets, in pre-prepared packets, that he administered while she was away from the table, suggested a degree of planning.
Justice Elkaim convicted Mokmargana and sentenced him to a suspended period of six months imprisonment for the offence.
"I do not think that it is inconsistent with the jury's verdict to say that the purpose of the administration of the drug was to render [the woman] into an at least drowsy state and to take advantage of her.
"[She] did not consent to the administration of the drug."
The court heard the man lost his job in November when his employer found out about the charge. He had been rejected for accommodation in Canberra during the trial.
Justice Elkaim did not believe Mokmargana would re-offend but said there was a need to deter others from committing this sort of crime.
"Offences of this natures are easy to commit but capable of producing significant harm," he said in sentencing the man on Friday.
He said the woman was fortunate to have suffered no physical after effects of the drug, but had a traumatic experience waiting for the police that night. She described those moments during the man's trial this week as the "hardest 45 minutes" of her life.
