Rolf Harris – guilty on 12 charges of indecent assault
Rolf Harris, 84, has been found guilty of indecently assaulting young women and girls in a series of sexually motivated attacks that date back to 1968.
The trial took place at London’s Southwark Crown Court, where a jury deliberated for eight days before convicting Harris on the following 12 counts of indecent assault:
- 1968-1970 autograph hunter aged 7/8
- 1978 waitress aged 16/17
- 1970s-1980s seven counts of assaulting daughter’s friend, from age 13
- 1986 three counts of assaulting Tonya Lee, a school girl on a theatre trip, aged 14
Before the guilty verdict was delivered, Sasha Wass QC, prosecuting, commented:
of deviant sexual behaviour. The chances of any of them
making up such similar accusations in the absence
of knowing each other is absurd.”
Rolf Harris – Operation Yewtree
In response to the Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal, the Metropolitan Police set up Operation Yewtree in October 2012. The ongoing investigation aims to seek out historic child sex offenders.
On March 28 2013, Rolf Harris was arrested in Berkshire as part of Operation Yewtree. Harris became the 10th high profile figure to be arrested under Yewtree. There are 17 known arrests in total.
Other notable names connected with Yewtree include entertainer Gary Glitter, who currently awaits trial, and publicist Max Clifford, who was sentenced in May to eight years in prison on eight counts of indecent assault.
Further allegations of sexual abuse against Rolf Harris
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) reports that 13 potential victims of Rolf Harris have contacted the charity’s helpline.
John Cameron, head of Child Protection at the NSPCC, said:
I think the good news story out this, is that people will come
further in increasing numbers to report abuse.”
If you have had experience of sexual abuse, and you would like confidential and pro-active advice about bringing those responsible to justice, contact Hampson Hughes Solicitors today on 0800 888 6888 or email
Source:
- BBC article
- Guardian article
- Guardian article
- Telegraph article
