Panicked top BBC presenter ‘who paid for sex pics called youngster twice to demand their mum stops the investigation’
THE BBC star accused of paying a teenager for sex pictures called her in a panic after we revealed the bombshell claims.
The presenter, suspended today, is said to have called last week and asked: “What have you done?”
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It is claimed he also asked the youngster to call his mother to get her to “stop the investigation”.
The government was demanding answers from BBC boss Tim Davie when the Met Police were contacted as part of the investigation.
This happened, as Beeb sources admitted: “The BBC has started receiving public calls about the behavior of the person at the center of the investigation.”
The now 20-year-old teenager’s family were upset at the wording of the BBC’s statement about the star’s suspension.
BBC Sex Probe Latest:
“New allegations” came to light on Thursday, it said.
The family stated that after the initial complaint, no one from the company called them for a proper interview.
On Saturday night, the family turned over an evidence dossier to the station’s lead investigator, former police officer Jeff Brown.
Also among the claims are that the presenter has given the youngster over £35,000 since he was 17.
In an interview with The Sun on Sunday, the mum said the family complained in May but was frustrated that a month later the star was still on the air.
Earlier, the mother told how the teenager used the man’s alleged funds to feed his drug addiction.
She said they went from a “cheerful youngster to a ghostly crack addict” in just three years.
Several BBC stars, including Jeremy Vine, Nicky Campbell, Gary Lineker and Rylan Clark have publicly stated they are not.
Former Culture Secretary Frazer said Mr Davie had assured her that the broadcaster was “quickly and sensitively investigating”.
She said: “Given the nature of the allegations, it is important that the BBC are now given the space to conduct their investigation, establish the facts and take appropriate action. I will be kept informed.”
It is understood that no timeline was given for the investigation. Caroline Dinenage, the Conservative Chair of the Culture Select Committee, also spoke to Mr Davie.
Politicians have been angered by the BBC’s lack of response after it failed to publicly address key issues surrounding the inquiry.
Former Culture Secretary Damian Collins said: “I think the concern will be that the family raised this in May this year, but what happened when the complaint was first made?”
“Why didn’t they do something sooner? I think that’s a fair challenge for the BBC.”
THE SUN SAYS: BBC under fire
THREE days have passed since The Sun first reported harrowing allegations that a top BBC presenter had sent tens of thousands of pounds to a vulnerable teenager who provided him with sex images.
The teenager, who was just 17 when the two first met, used the money to pay for deadly crack cocaine, jeopardizing his own health and tearing his desperate family apart.
The BBC says it has “very serious” questions to answer and its reputation is suffering “serious damage”.
Politicians from all sides, meanwhile, say it is “deeply concerning” that the presenter, who has been accused of serious misconduct, was not immediately removed from the show and are calling for a full investigation. The moderator was suspended yesterday.
The heart of the scandal is as follows: The teenager’s concerned parents first contacted the BBC on May 19.
Why on earth didn’t the hosts of managers immediately question the moderator or start a full investigation?
Why was it only well over a month after the initial complaint that meaningful action was taken when The Sun contacted the BBC?
The parents claim that payments to their crack-addicted child have since continued.
Just because nothing happened and the well-known name continued to appear on their TV screens, they turned to this newspaper in utter desperation. They didn’t ask for payment. They just wanted the payments that are harming their child to stop.
The BBC has a sad history of ignoring complaints and rumors about its own presenters, with sometimes dire consequences.
She urgently needs to come clean about her actions in this latest case – otherwise she risks irreparable damage to public confidence.