More abuse claims against Harris

1 July 2014 Last updated at 12:37

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The BBC's David Sillito takes a look back at Rolf Harris's case

Up to 12 more people have come forward with claims of abuse against disgraced entertainer Rolf Harris, lawyers say.

Police have already said they are considering new allegations against the 84-year-old after he was found guilty of 12 indecent assaults against four victims between the 1960s and 80s.

One of those Harris abused was aged seven or eight at the time.

The fresh claims were made to the legal firm representing victims of Jimmy Savile.

Dozens more of Harris's alleged victims came forward during the trial, some from his native Australia.

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For older Australians Harris was one of the country's best known exports, a household name"

End Quote

Police in Western Australia said there were currently no new investigations into Harris but a Metropolitan Police spokesman said the UK force had "received a number of new allegations and these are now being considered."

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he was "gutted and dismayed" by the conviction.

Mr Abbot told Australia's ABC radio sexual abuse was "an utterly abhorrent crime" and added: "It's just sad and tragic that this person, who was widely admired, seems to have been a perpetrator."

Tributes to Perth-born Harris in Western Australia could now be removed, the city's mayor Lisa Scaffidi said.

During his trial prosecutors said Harris was a "Jekyll and Hyde" character who took advantage of his fame.

The judge, Mr Justice Sweeney, said a custodial term would be "uppermost in the court's mind" when sentence was delivered on Friday, but he wanted to see a medical report before passing sentence.

The verdict was greeted on the front page of the Sydney Morning Herald with a full-page mugshot beneath a one-word "Guilty" headline.

Daughter's friend

Richard Scorer from Slater & Gordon said the law firm was carefully considering claims from "up to a dozen" people who had come forward with fresh allegations.

"What we have discovered in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal is just how deep child abuse in institutions ran and how some people were seemingly allowed to continue their sickening crimes unchallenged," the abuse lawyer said.

The central allegation during his trial concerned a friend of Harris's daughter who he had groomed and molested from the age of 13 until she was 19.

Other woman came forward after his arrest to say they were touched or groped by Harris, sometimes at his public appearances. The prosecution highlighted the similarities in their stories.

Six women told the court about indecent assaults Harris had carried out against them in Australasia, New Zealand and Malta. The entertainer could not be prosecuted over those incidents in a British court but the evidence was introduced by the prosecution as an added illustration of his behaviour.

Broadmoor visit

Harris, from Bray, Berkshire, was first questioned in November 2012 in Scotland Yard's Operation Yewtree investigation set up in the wake of sexual abuse allegations against the late BBC Radio 1 DJ Jimmy Savile.

Although his arrest was unconnected to Savile's offending, the publicity surrounding that case had prompted the friend of Harris's daughter to come forward.

Lawyers for Harris wrote to media organisations including the BBC at the time warning them against naming their client and threatening libel action.

When he was arrested again in March 2013 the Met did not name Harris and he was not identified in the mainstream media until a few weeks later.

The other women who gave evidence in court contacted police after Harris's arrest was made public and he was charged in August of that year.

Harris was named last week in a report into the actions of Savile, which revealed he had visited Broadmoor in 1973.

Politicians and officials have faced criticism for allowing the man whose prolific abuse sparked the Yewtree investigation unrestricted access to the psychiatric hospital where he assaulted patients.

A spokeswoman for West London Mental Heath NHS Trust, which runs services at Broadmoor, said Harris may have been accompanied by Savile during his visit but that he was also escorted by staff at all times and there was "no suggestion of any inappropriate behaviour".

'Beyond belief'

One of Harris's victims, Tonya Lee, 43, said the abuse had led her to contemplate taking her own life.

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Tonya Lee said she had been abused by Harris while on a visit to the UK when she was 15

The mother-of-three said: "To this day I can't go to sleep without lying in a lounge and having the TV on. I cannot lie in a room and try and sit with my thoughts and go to sleep."

Letitia Fitzpatrick, who gave a character reference for the prosecution about an alleged assault, told the BBC: "It was such an unpleasant experience that I just wanted to forget about it and move on and not really think about it again."

Meanwhile it has emerged that Harris fronted a child protection awareness video in the 1980s in which he was filmed telling children how to say no to predatory adults.

John Cameron - head of child protection at the NSPCC - told BBC Breakfast: "The audacity of the man is beyond belief.

"Here he was, giving this pretence that he had children's welfare at heart, but of course behind the scenes, in front of many people, he was abusing children on a regular basis."

The charity says it received a number of calls to its helpline relating to Harris since the start of his trial and has passed them to police.

Its helpline saw a spike of almost two thirds on Monday in the wake of the guilty verdict.

Speaking after the entertainer was convicted, Det Ch Insp Mick Orchard, said: "I want to thank the women who came forward for their bravery, I hope today's guilty verdict will give them closure and help them to begin to move on with their lives.

"Today's case and verdict once again shows that we will always listen to, and investigate allegations regardless of the time frame or those involved."

Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders said it was too early to say whether Harris could face any further action.

"We'll work with the police and look at any cases that they send to us and see if there is enough evidence to bring more charges," she told the BBC.

Harris was a mainstay of family entertainment in Britain and his native Australia for more than 50 years. He arrived in London in 1952, becoming a fixture on TV screens as a children's entertainer, songwriter, and entertainer, on the BBC and other networks.

'Absolute disgrace'

He is to be stripped of his British Academy of Film and Television Arts fellowship - the TV industry's highest accolade - which was awarded just two years ago, a Bafta spokesman said.

There are also calls for him to lose the honours awarded to him by the Queen during a lifetime in the entertainment industry.

Labour MP Simon Danczuk said: "I think the guy is an absolute disgrace and he is bringing the whole honours system into disrepute."

A final decision on whether to revoke Harris's CBE and MBE rests with Buckingham Palace.

The Australian, who began his career as an artist, received his CBE in 2005, the year he painted a portrait of the Queen to mark her 80th birthday.

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