Thomas Watkinson, 60, was arrested in 2019 after a number of historic allegations were made against him. Mr Sheerman is the MP for Huddersfield, the constituency of Liz Green, who was one of those harassed by the former BBC broadcaster. Belfield, who is 42 and from Nottingham, was originally charged with stalking eight different people, who were mostly current or former BBC staff. Log In. See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, order back issues and use the historic Daily Express newspaper archive. I find in relation to Ms Breen and Ms Thomas abusive emails running into thousands were sent over about a 10-year period. A civil stalking order is being pursued at the magistrates' court against former BBC DJ Alex Belfield, from Mapperley, who is now serving a sentence of more than five years in prison for his shameful conduct online. He was found guilty of this offence in relation to two of the complainants - Mr Spedding, who is known as Bernie Keith, and videographer Ben Hewis. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. Create new account. John McGuinness QC, prosecuting, had said as he opened the case to the jury how: "Stephanie Hirst found Mr Belfield's conduct towards her to be sickening, misogynistic and transphobic. Mr Belfield until Nottinghamshire Police became involved in late . Today at 1:44 AM. Thomas Watkinson was arrested in 2019 following historic allegations, Never miss a crime story with our free email updates. Man dies in serious crash that closed road for hours, Almost 1,000 damage caused to car in eight months on town centre road, "There are always cars parked without permits which leads to a severe lack of parking and an extremely busy street". He also said some of the emails were sent to the BBC press office in order to get responses to stories he worked on, and were "all 100% legitimate journalism". [3], Belfield went on to claim online fame through his YouTube channel called The Voice of Reason. "She and other women were trolled unmercifully," he said in the House of Commons. Mr Belfield, who is defending himself decided not to give evidence, but he addressed the jury during his closing speech. Detectives from Nottinghamshire Police conducted an in-depth investigation and charged Watkinson with a range of sexual offences committed against three girls under the age of 14 years. She added: "He very deliberately set out to make other peoples lives a misery causing them very genuine fear, alarm and distress. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. "For him to associate me with Jimmy Savile is unthinkable.". She replied from the witness box: "Absolutely, it was a parody of me". [3] He used the channel to promote his anti-establishment and right-wing ideology,[5] broadcasting from home in the Mapperley area of Nottingham. [4] He presented the mid-morning show on BBC Radio Leeds. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk. The former BBC radio presenter, of Mapperley, can be seen smirking in his police mugshot after targeting former colleagues, a well-known celebrity, and two other men online. He was responsible for stories on the front pages of The Sun, the Daily Mirror and the Daily Express. Over the four week trial, the court heard how the former presenter was set about undermining the career of a former colleague with hurtful and untrue comments Belfield directed via email, social media and via his YouTube channel, following a series of workplace disputes. Nottingham Police New Boss @carolinenotts SACKS Deputy . The charges cover a time period of more than eight years, and are as follows: The trial began on 5 July and has heard evidence from the complainants and numerous other prosecution witnesses. He now runs a YouTube channel called The Voice of Reason, but he told jurors he had previously worked for the BBC for 15 years. . Alex Belfield is alleged to have repeatedly harassed the victims, including via email and through his YouTube channel and Twitter account. "In some cases this has extended to death threats," he said. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. Our guests praise the helpful staff and the comfy rooms . Forgot account? Alex Belfield was convicted of four charges following a trial at Nottingham Crown Court, Belfield was found guilty of "simple" stalking in relation to BBC presenter Jeremy Vine, Belfield was previously a presenter at BBC Radio Leeds, Belfield made videos throughout his trial and posted them on YouTube. [1], Belfield was convicted in September 2022 for four of eight stalking charges at Nottingham Crown Court. In the letter to Nottinghamshire Chief Constable, Mr Belfields solicitor alleged that officers who arrested him on March 27 were not wearing insigniaor any form of identification or body worn video equipment breaking National College of Policing rules. Let's do the brief summary: The ex-radio host, who presented on . MP seeks inquiry over BBC staff harassed online, Harassed women accuse BBC of failing to help them, The stalker who reported on his own trial, My jailed stalker says he'll be back - Jeremy Vine, Former BBC presenter found guilty of stalking, Alleged stalker 'is victim of BBC witch-hunt', Jeremy Vine tells trial of 'avalanche of hatred', BBC boss 'terrified by radio host's stalking', Ex-BBC presenter 'stalked fellow broadcasters', Nottinghamshire firefighters get trauma packs in response to Manchester Arena inquiry, Illegal weapon found under sink in search for suspect, New recruit Sarah set to open the doors to Ashfield companys growth, Worksop pub and kitchen plans fun day to celebrate King's coronation, Russia launches missile attacks on Ukraine, MasterChef Australia host Jock Zonfrillo dies, Air strikes pound Sudan capital as truce extended. Consequently we will be making no further comment at this time., Mr Belfield told the Sunday Express: The cover up by the corrupt BBC and Nottingham Police continues as this proves, I cant wait to see the disgraceful Chief Constable and his lying officers in the High Court and expose, in entirety, his forces ineptitude, harassment and pure incompetence., Referring to the Princess Diana interview scandal where a report by retired judge Lord Dyson revealed the BBC had tricked her and subsequently covered up, he added: Clearly, after the events of this week - the BBC is already exposed as the despicable, vile and seemingly shameless organisation it is. He did so after the prosecution told him the maximum sentence for this offence was five years, but the maximum sentence is actually 10 years. He gave jurors an example of the BBC's booking system for train tickets, saying it would cost about 150 to book a ticket via this, when he could purchase a first class ticket for the same journey himself at the cost of only 32. live from las vegas this is the voice of reason for a monday it is a month today until i finally get my dream of 11 years of getting into court with people who i believe have lied and cheated to create one of the biggest witch hunts in the history of the media that led to five arrests three raids without warrants and the bomb squad . Alex Belfield - The Voice Of Reason Live Yesterday at 10:56 AM Day 13 Court Report R v Alex Belfield BBC Northampton DJ Berna . The full wording of the charges states that he "pursued a course of conduct that amounted to harassment" of the complainants, which caused them "serious alarm or distress" and "amounted to stalking". The arrest was the fifth time Mr Belfield has been arrested by Nottinghamshire Police in the last 18 months after a series of complaints made against him by the BBC or its employees. VideoThe secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, LGBT troops take love for Eurovision to front line, Why an Indian comedian is challenging fake news rules. It's never rains . We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. Something went wrong, please try again later. "You made this highly successful and confident radio presenter lose all joy in life and turned him into a shell.". I am delighted that we have been able to get justice for these women. However, he claims he had legitimate reasons for doing so, and has a right to freedom of speech. She was asked by David Aubrey QC, a court-appointed defence advocate on Tuesday: "Did you regard that as being a parody?". Mr Belfield is accused of stalking by sending emails, making YouTube videos and posting messages on social media. Belfield was convicted of 4 charges - two were alternatives of "simple stalking". However, Mr Belfield told jurors he had resigned "because they didn't want to give me more money, which is fine". The former BBC radio presenter was jailed for five-and-a-half years after being convicted. "He now has developed the insight that he didn't have before," Mr Aubrey said. "I am a journalist who is instinctively going to upset people by the nature of what I do," he said. "You were not a whistleblower in any sense but developed a fixation with pursuing Mr Vine with a campaign of abuse," the judge said. Mr Belfield, who is 42 and lives in Nottingham,. Read More: 'Teenager hurt' in Mansfield Road collision. Mr Belfield read out what are known as "agreed facts", which are facts agreed as evidence by the prosecution. he said. The judge said it was an aggravating factor that Belfield's harassment was public, as this caused his social media followers to also abuse Mr Spedding over a "lengthy period". or. "Each of them [the complainants] suffered a campaign of harassment by email and social media communications. Officers from the. According to the letter, Mr Belfield is currently engaged in a civil dispute with individuals in the broadcaster who he is suing for defamation. READ MORE: Nottingham man Alex Belfield appears in court on harassment charges The offences took place in multiple addresses in Nottingham in the 1990s and early 2000s. Mr Belfield told the jurors that the BBC was trying to "shut me up" because he had been saying things that were "inconvenient truths". "Finally, I would like to pay tribute to the victims in this case who have shown enormous courage and dignity in coming forward to give evidence in public. After a campaign of harassment against multiple victims, Alex Belfield was jailed last week. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking. "I was the most successful anti-BBC journalist in the country," he said. Something went wrong, please try again later. Mr Belfield is accused of stalking by sending emails, making YouTube videos and. Two of which included causing alarm and distress. The police are advised to consider applying for an order where it appears to them that: Belfield was jailed last September after he was found guilty of waging a relentless stalking campaign against BBC Radio Northampton's Bernie Keith, and subjecting TV presenter Jeremy Vine to an "avalanche of hatred" - but has since lodged an appeal. Belfield denies all the charges and the trial continues. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. NO FURTHER ACTION 2 Nottingham Police DISGRACE . YouTuber Alex Belfield is planning to appeal against his prison sentence for stalking four men online. She became much more hesitant on air because of Mr Belfield. We are aware of the Court proceedings you refer to. To protect the history, the street even has it's own historical group known as the Mill Gate Conservation Group. Later she referred to it in her evidence as, "a hurtful parody" and "parodying me", "transphobic", and "hurtful at the same time". Did this woman die because her genitals were cut? As always you can unsubscribe at any time. The court heard the original application was amended to add two more people who did not form part of the criminal trial. The judge made restraining orders on the four victims. "Your methods were, however, just as effective as a way of intimidating your victims, and were in many ways much harder to deal with.". Alex Belfield is currently in prison after being convicted of stalking four men, Barry Sheerman said he and other MPs want an independent inquiry, Liz Green said she had been suicidal as a result of Belfield's harassment, Rozina Breen said the BBC had left her and other staff to "sink or swim", Belfield had been a presenter at BBC Radio Leeds. Belfield, from Nottingham, has been jailed for stalking four men including broadcaster Jeremy Vine. He warned him he could then be recalled to prison if he commits a further offence. Count 8: Jeremy Vine, not guilty to stalking to cause alarm and distress but guilty to simply stalking - Belfield is sentenced to 13 weeks consecutively for stalking Mr Vine. Mr Belfield was arrested on March 27 after he was blamed for an alleged bomb hoax at the BBC. "Alex Belfield: Former BBC presenter denies stalking charges", "Alex Belfield latest: who is the Voice of Reason YouTuber and what he said on Twitter about the BBC and arrests", "Former Mansfield 103.2 presenter Alex Belfield summonsed to court on stalking allegations", "Ex-BBC DJ guilty of stalking Jeremy Vine and other former colleagues", "Alex Belfield summonsed in relation to stalking offence", "Sexist Alex Belfield videos still on YouTube despite prison sentence", "Ex-BBC Radio Leeds DJ Alex Belfield jailed for stalking Jeremy Vine and others", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alex_Belfield&oldid=1148461422, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 6 April 2023, at 08:54.
Times Square To Chinatown Subway,
Celebrity Cruises Health Questionnaire,
Sensory Imagery In The Pedestrian,
Cody Smith Springfield Mo,
Waste Management Recycling Schedule 2022,
Articles N