David Walliams investigated by police over alleged serious sexual offences

Detailed summary

The Metropolitan Police has launched an investigation after receiving “a number of allegations of non-recent serious sexual offences” against David Walliams. A High Court judge…

The Metropolitan Police has launched an investigation after receiving “a number of allegations of non-recent serious sexual offences” against David Walliams.

A High Court judge had rejected a legal bid by the comedian and children’s author to prevent him from being named in a report by ITN and The Guardian.

A series of accusations – including that he used his celebrity status to prey on girls as young as 15 – were published on Tuesday after a deadline expired for Walliams to appeal. The allegations date back to 2003.

Lawyers for Walliams, 55, said he never engaged in grooming young women, and that the allegations of serious criminal conduct are false.

In a statement, the Met said: “In recent days, the Met has received a number of allegations of non-recent serious sexual offences involving a man now in his 50s. Those who have come forward are being supported by specialist officers.”

The force added that the allegations it was receiving were separate from those reported by ITN and The Guardian, but “as part of their investigation, detectives are also proactively reviewing that reporting to establish whether there is any evidence of offences”.

Detective Superintendent Mike Cagney, whose team is leading the investigation, said: “We would encourage anyone who has been the victim of a sexual offence to come forward and speak to us, no matter when it happened.

“We know reporting allegations of this nature can be daunting, but specialist officers are on hand to provide support, answer questions and guide you through the process.”

Responding to ITN and The Guardian‘s three-year investigation, Walliams said earlier this week: “I am not a sexual predator. I have not broken the law, but I am devastated that some of the women I met 10 to 20 years ago have now expressed hurt or anger towards me.”

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