Rolf Harris appears in London court in person on indecent assault charges
Australian entertainer Rolf Harris allegedly employed a team of private investigators to question friends of a woman who has accused him of indecent assault, a London court has heard. The woman said the past three years has been “horrendous’’ as private investigators questioned her family and even friends she hadn’t spoken to in 30 years.
Harris, 87, sat in Southwark Crown court for the first time in his trial, having been released last Friday from Stafford prison for previous convictions. He made little movement in the dock except to lean forward to hear, and often propped his arm on an adjoining chair.
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Harris sat quietly in courtroom four wearing a hearing loop as the jury of five men and seven women heard how he had private investigators contact many friends of the woman who alleges she was indecently assaulted at the BBC show Saturday Superstore in 1983. During the recording of the show the woman obtained the autographs of Harris as well as other performers, including Wham’s George Michael.
The woman has told the court she was shocked and traumatised when Harris indecently assaulted her by squeezing her breast and saying to her “do you often get molested on a Saturday morning?’
Harris has denied four charges of indecent assault involving three teenagers between 1971 and 1983.
The woman, during cross examination by Harris’ legal counsel Stephen Vullo, said many friends had been contacted by private investigators after making the complaint to police.
She said: “It has been horrendous, my friends and family having private investigators turning up at doorsteps, people I haven’t seen for 30 years. It has been awful, it is something I wouldn’t do for fun: I wanted vindication and justice for people this has happened to over the years.’’
The woman spoke to one of her friends after the private investigator had been to see her and discovered the investigators had been trying to find people she had worked with.
“I was not aware of what they were looking for, I know they turned up at friends houses,’’ the woman said.
She later remarked: “The last three years of my life and those of my friends have been probed into and it hasn’t been a nice experience.’’
The woman rejected suggestions by Mr Vullo that Harris may have been joking if he made a remark about being molested.
“Absolutely not, I fail to see if he asks children 13 and under if they like to be molested on a Saturday morning it is a joke,’’ she said.
“I fail to see if he said it to a group or single child it could be misconstrued as a joke in any way.’’
The woman said she had told countless people about the incident with Harris but her family had not believed her.
“I spent 30 odd years not being believed,’’ she said.
“Not being believed by your own family for 30 years, it takes a while to make the decision to come forward to the police. ‘’
The woman denied being motivated to make the complaint to seek compensation from Harris.
“I haven’t (sought compensation) and don’t intend to, this isn’t about compensation, it is about vindication and justice,’’ the woman said.
“I can’t understand how someone would want to profit from something like this.’’
The trial continues.
EARLIER: ‘Groper Rolf’ — accused arrives at court
Rolf Harris has arrived early at Southwark Crown Court supported by his niece Jenny to contest indecent assault charges.
It was the first time Harris, 87, has been able to walk into the court, having had to previously participate via video link from Stafford prison.
The Australian entertainer had left Stafford, where he had been residing for previous convictions, last Friday morning.
He arrived in a luxury black car with a bodyguard and his niece nearly two hours before the court was due to start but was met with at phalanx of photographers and camera crews.
Harris is contesting four charges of indecent assault in the trial. He has denied indecently assaulting three girls, alleged to have taken place between 1971 and 1983.
Last week Harris attended the court hearing via a video link but he will now attend the court on a daily basis.
The jury of seven women and five men have heard that one complainant had referred to Harris as “groper Rolf’’ after he had allegedly indecently assaulted her at a celebrity sports event when she was aged 16. Another complainant said she was in shock after Harris groped her breast at the BBC Television Centre in 1983 when she was 13.
She said Harris had said to her, “Do you often get molested on a Saturday morning?”
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