'Rubbish': 20-year-old at centre of BBC scandal denies claims but parents 'stand by' their story
The facts are 'incredibly, hotly disputed', as ITV News' Paul Brand reports
The 20-year-old, who an unnamed BBC presenter allegedly paid thousands of pounds for sexually explicit photos, has said the claims are "rubbish," but their mother - who made the allegations- says she 'stands by' her story. The lawyer representing the young person, who was alleged to have been 17 when the payments were first made, said the claims first made by their mother to The Sun are "totally wrong and there was no truth in it," in a statement to the BBC.
"Nonetheless, the Sun newspaper proceeded to publish their article," they continued.
On Monday night, the person's parents said they spoke out to protect their child and said they "stand by their claims" in an interview with The Sun.
“It is sad but we stand by our account and we hope they get the help they need," their mother said to the newspaper.
The step-father added: “We are disappointed they made a statement. It’s not true.”
A brief timeline of events so far
Friday, May 19: The young person's family complain to the BBC about a top presenter, according to the Sun
Thursday, July 6: "Different" allegations are brought to the BBC's attention, says Tim Davie
Friday, July 7: the Sun publishes a story that an unnamed BBC presenter has paid a teenager thousands of pounds for sexually explicit photos; the teen's mother accuses the star of fuelling her child's "crack cocaine addiction"
Saturday, July 8: Gary Lineker and Jeremy Vine tweet they are not the unidentified staff member following social media speculation
Sunday, July 9: Rylan Clarke also denies any connection to the story
Sunday, July 9: The BBC confirms the accused presenter has been suspended and that the corporation is in touch with the police
Monday, July 10: Downing Street issues a warning to social media sites following baseless accusations thrown at top BBC talent; Met Police confirm they are still establishing whether a criminal offence was committed
Monday, July 10: The young person at the centre of the allegations tells BBC News via a lawyer that the allegations are "rubbish" and there is "no truth at all" in the Sun's report
Monday, July 10: The parents of the young person speak to the Sun and say they "standy by" their claims.
Earlier today the lawyer representing the 20-year-old said, in a letter to the BBC, "for the avoidance of doubt, nothing inappropriate or unlawful has taken place between our client and the BBC personality," before they called the allegations "rubbish".
The BBC has since released fresh information from the letter this evening, including claims the mother and the young person are estranged.
"Nobody from the Sun newspaper appears to have made any attempt to contact our client prior to the publication of the allegations on Friday 6 July,” the lawyer writes, according to BBC News.
On Friday, the Sun claimed a top BBC star had sent thousands of pounds to a young person in exchange for sexually explicit images over the course of three years.
The young person’s mother told the paper she saw a picture of the presenter on her child’s phone, in which she alleged the BBC presenter was in his underwear.
She claimed she was told it was "a picture from some kind of video call".
The family first complained to the BBC on May 19, according to the newspaper.
A spokesperson for the Sun told BBC News: "We have reported a story about two very concerned parents who made a complaint to the BBC about the behaviour of a presenter and the welfare of their child.
"Their complaint was not acted upon by the BBC.
"We have seen evidence that supports their concerns... It's now for the BBC to properly investigate."
Police are carrying out further inquiries to establish whether any crime has been committed after BBC representatives met with detectives on Monday morning.
The force said they are assessing the information discussed at the meeting but have not yet launched an investigation following allegations the presenter paid a teenager tens of thousands of pounds for sexually explicit images.
The Sun also reported on Monday that the presenter had made “panicked” calls to the person last week after the allegations became known.
BBC director-general Tim Davie is due to face the media on Tuesday for a scheduled briefing following the release of the corporation’s annual report.
In a note to staff on Sunday, he said: “The BBC became aware of a complaint in May; the BBC investigations team have been looking into this since it was raised and have been actively following up.
“New allegations, of a different nature, were put to us on Thursday, and, in addition to our own inquiries, we have also been in touch with external authorities, in line with our protocols.
“I can also confirm that we have suspended a member of staff.”
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...