12 July 2023 , 17:21
723
0
Huw Edwards' wife has released a statement naming him as the BBC presenter at the heart of the recent newspaper allegations.
It was reported at the end of last week that an unnamed presenter had paid a young person £35,000 for sexually explicit pictures over the course of three years. The incident is said to have taken place when the person was aged 17 until the age of 20.
Since then, three more other people spoke out to document their own experiences with the presenter which were alleged to include that one person aged in their early 20s met the presenter on a dating app before they received a number of "threatening messages" whilst another claimed to receive messages using love hearts and kisseson Instagram when they were 17-years-old.
Vicky Flind, Huw's wife, released a statement today to say: "In light of the recent reporting regarding the ‘BBC Presenter’ I am making this statement on behalf of my husband Huw Edwards, after what have been five extremely difficult days for our family. I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children.
"Huw is suffering from serious mental health issues. As is well documented, he has been treated for severe depression in recent years. The events of the last few days have greatly worsened matters, he has suffered another serious episode and is now receiving in-patient hospital care where he’ll stay for the foreseeable future."
EastEnders' Jake Wood's snap of son has fans pointing out the pair's likeness
She added: "Once well enough to do so, he intends to respond to the stories that have been published. To be clear Huw was first told that there were allegations being made against him last Thursday. In the circumstances and given Huw’s condition I would like to ask that the privacy of my family and everyone else caught up in these upsetting events is respected. I know that Huw is deeply sorry that so many colleagues have been impacted by the recent media speculation. We hope this statement will bring that to an end."
The BBC also issued a statement today to confirm they would be continuing their own investigation.
A BBC spokesperson said: "We have seen the statement from the police confirming they have completed their assessment and are not taking further action. We’re grateful to them for completing this work at speed.
"The police had previously asked us to pause our fact finding investigations and we will now move forward with that work, ensuring due process and a thorough assessment of the facts, whilst continuing to be mindful of our duty of care to all involved."
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email [email protected]