Tim Westwood has been accused of having sex with an underage girl as the troubling allegations against the veteran British DJ continue to mount, according to the BBC.
The victim, identified as Esther, claims Westwood had sex with her on several occasions in the early 1990s, starting when she was just 14 (below the age of consent in England). The DJ, now 64, was in his 30s at the time.
“I sit here today and face what I’ve been running from for a long time,” she said while describing the former BBC Radio 1 Hip Hop DJ as a “predator.” Westwood has yet to respond to the allegations.
Westwood is currently facing a string of sexual assault allegations from multiple women, all of whom are Black. A joint investigation by The Guardian and BBC in April uncovered a history of allegedly inappropriate and predatory behavior between 1992 and 2017.
Westwood strenuously denied the allegations of seven women who came forward as part of the original investigation. “Our client confirms that there has never been any complaint made against him, whether officially or unofficially, relating to claims of inappropriate behaviour of the nature described,” a spokesperson said.
Shortly after the allegations surfaced, Westwood stepped down from his weekly Saturday night radio show on Capital Xtra “until further notice.” He previously hosted BBC Radio 1’s inaugural rap show between 1994 and 2013, as well as MTV’s Pimp My Ride UK in the mid 2000s.
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Esther, who is one of several women to come forward since the original investigation, said she met Tim Westwood at his club nights in southeast London in the early 1990s and they exchanged numbers, despite him being aware of her age.
Months later, they agreed to meet up and Westwood drove her to a flat in west London, where he kissed her. “It progressed from there,” she told the BBC. “We had sex.”
Esther claims Westwood would call her at her home after 6:00 p.m., knowing her mother worked night shifts, and arrange to meet up. “I never gave consent [to sex], but I never said no either, so I just went along with it,” she said.
The relationship ended when Esther turned 16 and she described feeling “groomed” by the DJ. The experience greatly impacted her mental health and later led to her attempting to take her own life.
Another victim, who worked for Westwood’s promotional “street team” in 1999, was 15 when he allegedly kissed her, while another claims she was 16 when the DJ started a “controlling” relationship with her.
Earlier this month, the BBC announced it was reviewing six complaints relating to Westwood’s 19-year tenure at the corporation, despite director general Tim Davie previously insisting he had “seen no evidence of complaints.”