|
 The 69-year-old is the latest ageing British celebrity to be
convicted of sex crimes following police investigations launched
in the wake of revelations that the late Jimmy Savile, one of
the BBC's top TV presenters, had sexually abused hundreds of
victims over decades.
Travis, a former BBC Radio 1 DJ, had been cleared in February of
a string of sexual offences against women over three decades,
but the jury at Southwark Crown Court had failed to reach
verdicts on two indecent assault charges and prosecutors decided
he should be re-tried.
Travis, appearing under his real name of David Griffin, was
convicted of assaulting the researcher in 1995.
"David Griffin...indecently assaulted a young woman by touching
her in a way that was not only deeply invasive but also against
the law," said Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor Jenny Hopkins.
"The prosecution of sexual offences is often difficult and
complex, perhaps even more so when the allegations are from some
years ago," she added in a statement after the verdict.
Travis was cleared of the other indecent assault charge.
He will be sentenced on Friday.
Travis had denied all the accusations, describing himself as a
"big, hairy, cuddly bear" who was tactile but not a sexual
predator. He accused the women of making up the claims to make
money.
Among his fans was Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi, who singled
out his weekly show on the BBC World Service for making her
world "much more complete" during her 15 years under house
arrest between 1989 and 2010.
[to top of second column] |
Travis is the latest celebrity to have faced criminal charges after
London police launched "Operation Yewtree" in the wake of the 2011
death of Savile, one of Britain's biggest TV stars in the 1970s and
1980s.
Detectives said hundreds of people had contacted them with
allegations about famous figures after revealing that Savile had
sexually assaulted some 300 victims, mainly children, at BBC
premises and hospitals over six decades of abuse.
In July, 84-year-old entertainer Rolf Harris, a household name in
his native Australia and adopted home Britain, was jailed for almost
six years for abusing young girls some as young as seven or eight
over two decades.
The country's best-known publicist, Max Clifford, was found guilty
in May of indecently assaulting teenage girls some 30 years ago as
part of the investigation and sentenced to eight years in prison.
Critics have asked why the BBC and police failed to take action
years ago, but some commentators have also voiced concern the
investigation had become a "witch-hunt" against high-profile figures
of the past.
(Reporting by Michael Holden, Editing by Angus MacSwan)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
