Belfield compared his treatment with that of a police officer who had escaped jail despite being convicted of possessing child abuse images. I find you intended to maximise Mr Keiths distress.. The final two victims who went to court and testified against Belfield were both from the theatre world. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter'. ): They boast glorious ocean views, but swathes of homes along America's coastlines are at risk of tumbling off CLIFFS due to erosion, rising sea levels and extreme weather events, Are YOU guilty of these gym sins? "Alex Belfield's conduct, in the form of messages, broadcasts, insults and threats, left his victims fearful and anxious. This is the Jimmy Savile of trolling., Likening watching Belfields videos to swimming in sewage, Mr Vine said of the defendants conduct: It felt like I had a fish hook in my face and my flesh was being torn, and the only way to avoid further pain was to stay completely still., Jurors convicted Belfield of four charges committed between 2012 and 2021. He realised what he could do and did it with impunity. One of the complainants was his former colleague, Liz Green, who also presented a show at the radio station. No more waking up in the middle of the night filled with dread about what he might have said about them to his then 373,000. Bernard Spedding - guilty (majority verdict), Philip Dehany - not guilty to the charge on the indictment but guilty of the alternative charge of "simple" stalking (majority verdict), Jeremy Vine - not guilty to the charge on the indictment but guilty of the alternative charge of "simple" stalking (unanimous verdict). The BBC reports Alex Belfield, . One day, Green says she found a talented young producer crying in the toilets after being shouted at by Belfield. Alex performed 56 shows in 2012, 48 shows in 2013, 52 shows in 2014 & 54 shows in 2015.. With up to 3 or 4 shows a day - this years mammoth tour was his biggest production yet! . Bernard Spedding ignored every single correspondence. He hated the thing he loved, or hated other people having success within it.. Bernard Spedding ignored every single correspondence. arring a successful appeal, Belfield will serve at least the next two years and 39 weeks in jail, before being released on licence to serve the second half of his sentence. Belfield, of Mapperley, Nottingham, denies causing serious alarm or distress to Channel 5 and BBC Radio 2 presenter Mr Vine, former BBC Radio Leeds mid-morning show host Stephanie Hirst, Mr Keith and five other people. Mr Justice Saini, sentencing, told Belfield, who sat taking notes in the dock: Your offences are so serious only a custodial sentence can be justified.. Finally, respite from what for some had been a decade of near-constant abuse. Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims. Belfield was not accused of physically stalking the complainants, who were mostly current or former BBC staff. Im clearly of more risk to this country than a man who is attracted to children, he deadpanned. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Presenter Iain Lee has since come out to say Belfield targeted him for many years, but that he was too frightened to go to court to give evidence. Though the BBC knew Belfield was spreading lies about them in public, at no point did anyone from the BBC refute the allegations, she says. He added there was no escape for Belfields victims, until bail conditions were imposed ahead of his trial. "He now has developed the insight that he didn't have before," Mr Aubrey said. Former BBC radio personality Alex Belfield, 42, is also a vlogger from Nottinghamshire. Police inquiry opened Feb 2020 Nottinghamshire Police. The judge said he agreed with some of the witnesses in the case, who said Belfield had "weaponised the internet". I will refer to him by that name. According to the Institute of Lawfare, lawfare is the misuse and abuse of the law for political, commercial and military ends. Despite later coming out as a member of the LGBT community when defending himself against allegations of homophobia in his trial, Belfield attempted to project an image of rampant heterosexuality for much of his life, with frequent references to breasticles and the current or future Mrs Belfield. Prosecutors allege that Alex Belfield caused alarm and distress to eight victims after his contract with BBC Radio Leeds was not renewed in 2011. . Belfield, a former BBC radio presenter turned YouTube free speech advocate, was deeply sorry for the hurt he had caused, said Aubrey, after Belfield was convicted of stalking Vine and three other men online. Fixed: Release in which this issue/RFE has been fixed.The release containing this fix may be available for download as an Early Access Release or a General Availability Release. As well as jailing Belfield, Mr Justice Saini issued indefinite restraining orders banning the DJ from contacting his victims. In Mr Keiths case, the abuse was sustained over nine years, with the judge saying he had no escape from Belfield, who made up and repeated a wholly false and scandalous allegation about his former friend. "He was seconds away from taking his own life as a result of your conduct," the judge, Mr Justice Saini, told Belfield. Read about our approach to external linking. The civil application, which pre-dates the criminal case, is for a Stalking Protection Order on the basis he has carried out acts associated with stalking. We have begged the BBC to resolve this quietly and privately. ', Belfield had made a bogus claim that he had been sacked, Mr Keith said, adding: 'It was all too much. The judge said Belfield "bombarded" Mr Spedding - who had previously been friends with Belfield - with Facebook messages and emails, and made "highly abusive" YouTube videos containing false allegations. At conservative gathering, Trump is still the favourite. Stephanie Hirst presented a show at the station after he left, in the same time slot. while Mr Keith said the . The fact we were asked to ignore potentially criminal evidence is an issue. The full wording of the charges stated he "pursued a course of conduct that amounted to harassment" of the complainants, which "amounted to stalking" and caused them "serious alarm or distress". Call Today! A few months in, alarm bells started to ring, remembers Liz Green, who presented the lunchtime show that followed Belfields each day. Belfield was jailed after being found guilty of stalking four victims online. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. "You made this highly successful and confident radio presenter lose all joy in life and turned him into a shell.". Soon she terminated it altogether, after he tweeted something that suggested albeit in veiled terms that Green should be sent to Auschwitz, after his rival presenter fronted a highly praised documentary about the concentration camp. Heres the facts on what happened. Play it now! The judge said it was an aggravating factor that Belfield's harassment was public, as this caused his social media followers to also abuse Mr Spedding over a "lengthy period". Alex Belfield was born in . Video, Russian minister laughed at for Ukraine war claims, US-made cheese can be called 'gruyere' - court, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus, Alex Murdaugh's legal troubles are far from over, Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore dies at 61, Walkie Talkie architect Rafael Violy dies aged 78, Sonic boom heard as RAF Typhoon jets escort plane, Nelson's 97th-minute stunner gives Arsenal victory. ?99 WVdb5KckkVQg;E!qr 0^^jY{EILg%)%4BfyCyvy) The judge made restraining orders in relation to all of the complainants, including those Belfield was not convicted of stalking. 1. But some of the complainants feel they never really got justice. It could be interpreted as a reluctance to expose systemic failings and a complete failure in duty of care. Close Belfield-watchers believe his lurch to the right was a business decision rather than an ideological one. Ex-BBC presenter Alex Belfield's campaign of harassment had left Northampton's Bernie Keith just seconds away from suicide. I pleaded with him (Belfield) to stop. It is a powerful weapon for fighting political or commercial enemies . Belfield clearly resented being there, recalls Hazell He was sulking and had a face like thunder. Belfield, 42, who weaponised the internet, was last month found guilty at Nottingham Crown Court of waging a relentless campaign, where Mr Vine said he was subjected to an avalanche of hatred. 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Bernie Keith (pictured) who presents mid-morning shows and a weekly rock 'n' roll programme on BBC Radio Northampton, said former BBC Radio Leeds DJ Alex Belfield had subjected him to 'naked' hatred and false claims, Prosecutors allege that Belfield (pictured arriving at Nottingham Crown Court), who hosts a radio channel on YouTube, waged a relentless nine-year campaign of stalking against eight victims, including ex-colleagues, after BBC Radio Leeds did not renew his contract in 2011. Alex Belfield, who now runs a YouTube channel, stalked his victims by harassing them online. Stayed tuned - Alex Murdaugh's sordid tale is just getting started, Alex Murdaugh's head is shaved as he is booked into South Carolina prison fortress for weeks of evaluation before being sent to a maximum security facility housing the 'worst of the worst', At least 10 dead as wild storms lash the U.S: Tornadoes and golf ball-sized hail topples trucks and leaves one million without power in Kentucky, Alabama and Arkansas - after dumping 17 feet of snow in California, Massive gas tanker crashes in Maryland and EXPLODES into fireball killing the driver and setting local residents' homes ablaze as large plumes of black smoke and embers billow from crash site, 'I want to be a French child!' I had gone to the police to make it stop and it was just getting worse. Nobody from the corporation has apologised for what I and the others faced for more than a decade.. xRn0+|L)%^RKXoZi;;0AQnKF. I pleaded with him [Belfield] to stop. 'The counselling didn't work for me - I had never had counselling before and I found it very difficult, very alien.'. Belfield also published Mr Vine's address to a "mass audience", the judge said. The eight complainants hoped to never hear from their tormenter again, only to discover that he had arranged for that one final, defiant video to go live after the judge sent him down, goading them from beyond his prison walls. @decotheatre. He would harass some theatre companies, to the extent that his email address was blocked, and front of house staff were warned about him., Belfield had a complicated relationship with the entertainment industry, the director believes. The judge did stop him from interrogating complainants, appointing David Aubrey as a proxy advocate. I couldn't destroy the gift of life that they (his parents) gave me.'. View our online Press Pack. 'I can't remember when I have had a run of good sleep of longer than five hours. All prove they have absolutely no understanding of the law. His aim was, in his own words, to haunt his victims, and he deployed his army of followers to pile on with abusive messages to those targeted, said Mr Justice Saini. Then, during a broadcast at Leeds Playhouse, he asked an elderly lady what colour knickers she was wearing, resulting in the theatre boycotting the station. Alex Belfield arriving at Nottingham Crown Court on the day of his sentencing. "Although you at no stage committed any physical acts, Mr Vine considered himself and his family to be at risk from you and his followers," the judge told Belfield. At conservative gathering, Trump is still the favourite. While never submitting himself to cross-examination, he was allowed to deliver a pompous closing speech deriding the case as a BBC and police witch-hunt and describing himself as the No 1 anti-BBC journalist. He warned Belfield he needed to be "extra careful about your online communications" as he adjourned the case. Belfield was also convicted of the simple stalking of theatre blogger Philip Dehany, who suffered a vicious campaign of abuse. Bernie Keith confirms he's mentally ill and in therapy March 2020. Required fields are marked *. 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