Gary Glitter to be charged with eight sex offences against underage girls
Gary Glitter to be charged with eight sex offences against underage girls, Gary Glitter is to be charged with eight sexual offences – including drugging a teenager in order to facilitate sex – relating to girls aged between 12 and 14, the Crown Prosecution Service has said.
Glitter, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was the first person to be arrested as part of Operation Yewtree in relation to the police inquiry into sexual abuse by Jimmy Savile. He was taken into police custody in October 2012, questioned by police for more than nine hours, and has been on bail since.
But after receiving new evidence as recently as March this year, the CPS confirmed it believed it now had enough evidence to bring the case to trial.
Announcing the decision, Baljit Ubhey, chief crown prosecutor for CPS London, said on Thursday: "We have carefully considered the evidence gathered by the Metropolitan Police Service in relation to Paul Gadd, also known as Gary Glitter. He was arrested on 28 October 2012 over allegations of sexual offences and the police have been providing material to the CPS since July 2013, with the most recent material submitted in March 2014.
"Having completed our review, we have concluded, in accordance with the code for crown prosecutors, that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest for Mr Gadd to be charged with eight offences under the Sexual Offences Act 1956. These relate to two female complainants aged between 12 and 14 at the time of the alleged offending between 1977 and 1980."
Glitter is accused of four counts of indecent assault involving the first complainant, who was aged 12 or 13 at the time, between 31 January and 31 May 1977. He is accused of one count of "administering a drug or other thing in order to facilitate sexual intercourse" and one count of sexual intercourse with a girl under 13 between the same dates. He is charged with two counts of indecent assault between 1 October 1979 and 31 December 1980 involving the second complainant, who was aged 13 or 14.
Glitter will appear at Westminster magistrates court on 19 June. Ubhey said five allegations made by two further complainants had been dropped because the CPS deemed there was "insufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction".
