A BBC public corporation presenter whose identity has not been released has been accused of paying an underage teenager to send him sexually explicit photos.
The tabloid newspaper “The Sun”, which revealed the scandal, points out today that the child’s mother was able to see the BBC star, of whom she herself was an admirer, in underwear “ready for my son to perform for him” in a video.
It is believed that the presenter paid more than 35,000 pounds (40,000 euros) to the minor from when he was 17 to 20 -his age now- in exchange for these sexual images, money with which the victim allegedly paid for his addiction to “crack “.
On Saturday night the BBC removed the presenter from the screen, whose identity is unknown although it is known that he is a “familiar face” of the public channel and that he has a six-figure salary.
Despite the fact that the BBC has said that it “takes these accusations very seriously”, the corporation is receiving multiple criticisms upon learning, according to “The Sun”, that the family filed a complaint in May but the presenter has continued to appear on screen.
The Minister of Culture, Lucy Frazer, on whom the BBC depends, spoke this Sunday with the director general of the corporation, Tim Davie, about the “very worrying accusations involving one of its presenters”, according to what she herself said through Twitter.
Davie “has assured me that the BBC is investigating it quickly and tactfully,” the conservative minister wrote on her social network account.
“Given the nature of the allegations, it is important that the BBC is given the space to carry out its investigation, establish the facts and take appropriate action.”
The criticisms have come for the moment both from the labor opposition and from the same ranks of the “tories”.
Labor spokeswoman for the Economy, Rachel Reeves, told “Sky News” that “what is worrying is that someone makes a complaint, a very serious complaint, and then they turn on the television the next day and (the presenter) is still there.”
For Conservative MP Caroline Dinenage, who chairs the parliamentary committee that oversees the BBC, “it is vital that broadcasters have the right systems and processes in place to ensure that their stars, who have disproportionate power and influence over the lives of others, do not abuse him.”
A BBC spokesman said the corporation “has processes to proactively deal” with such allegations, including “trying to talk to those who have contacted us.”
“If we do not receive a response to our attempts or receive further contact, that may limit our ability to progress things, but it does not mean that our investigations stop,” he added.
Several of the BBC stars, such as former soccer player Gary Lineker, have been quick to deny on their social networks that they were the person being investigated.