Clifford Charged With
Indecent Assaults

The man that celebrities send for when they’re mixed up in some public relations fiasco is now in the middle of his own.

Leading publicist Max Clifford is the second person to have been charged as part of Operation Yewtree, the child sex abuse investigation triggered by the scandal involving the late BBC personality Jimmy Savile.

Clifford, who’s made his name and fortune helping some of Britain’s most famous people repair their reputations or sell their “kiss and tell” stories, has been charged with 11 indecent assaults of girls and young women, including a 14-year-old.

Officers from Operation Yewtree had originally arrested Clifford December 6, adding him to a list that already included former glam rock star Gary Glitter, former Radio 1 DJ Dave Lee Travis, comedian Freddie Starr, retired BBC producer Wilfred De’Ath and veteran Radio 5 soccer commentator Stuart Hall.

The charges against the 70-year-old are said to relate to assaults allegedly committed between 1966 and 1985. They involve seven female complainants who were between the ages of 14 and 19 at the times of the alleged assaults.

Clifford said the charges were “completely false” and vowed to clear his name in court.

He said that he’s been “in a 24/7 nightmare” since his original arrest in December.
“The allegations in respect of which I have been charged are completely false,” he told Britain’s Press Association. “I have never indecently assaulted anyone in my life, and this will become clear during the course of the proceedings.”

Alison Saunders, chief crown prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, told The Guardian: “Having completed our review, we have concluded that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest for Mr Clifford to be charged with 11 offences of indecent assault relating to seven complainants.

“We have also decided there is insufficient evidence to authorise charges in relation to three separate allegations. These decisions were taken in accordance with the code for crown prosecutors and our guidance for prosecutors on sexual offences.”

The charges include an indecent assault against a 14-year-old girl in 1966, and indecent assault against an 18-year-old woman in 1974-75. Clifford also faces three charges of indecent assault on a 15-year-old girl in 1977-78 and indecent assault against a 19-year-old woman in 1978.

He is also charged with two indecent assaults against a girl, aged 16 or 17, in 1981-82, indecent assault against a 19-year-old woman in 1980-81, and two indecent assaults against an 18-year-old woman in 1984-85.

The only other person to have been charged as a result of Operation Yewtree is 55-year-old former BBC chauffeur David Smith.

Clifford will appear at Westminster magistrates court May 28. He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.