The young man who alleged Huw Edwards paid him £35,000, causing the scandal regarding the BBC broadcaster to first come to light, has spoken out for the first time.
This week, Edwards, 62, pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children in an unconnected case. The young man was allegedly a teenager at the time of his interaction with Edwards.
Speaking to The Mirror, the now-21-year-old said he felt "groomed" by Edwards.
"I want to tell the truth about what happened… I've stayed silent for so long to protect Huw, but I feel sick at what has happened," he told the publication.
The man, who wishes to remain anonymous, sparked the BBC probe into Edwards last year when his mum and stepdad claimed Edwards, who had been the face of BBC News, had paid £35,000 in return for "sordid" pictures.
At the time, the man defended Edwards but has since begun to feel like a victim, particularly in light of Edwards' court plea.
Huw Edwards pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children this week
Getty
The man claimed to the publication that he had been troubled when he first interacted with Edwards.
He said he had fallen out with his mum and stepdad and had been sleeping on friends' sofas as well as homeless shelters when he decided to start messaging famous people to ask for help.
After messaging Edwards, the former broadcaster deposited £500 into his PayPal account to help him pay for hotels for a few days.
"Although it was a friendship at the beginning, it did change. He would say things like, 'Are you going to do something for me then?'" the man told the publication.
He added: "I needed help, so I did. I feel like he sort of fed on my vulnerability… as he knew I needed the money. I felt like I was being groomed."
Edwards was suspended by the BBC after the claims by the man's mum and stepdad were made
Getty
It's reported the man send Edwards X-rated messages and videos. He continued: "Because of who he was as a BBC presenter and because he had such power…
He explained he "trusted" Edwards but that he was being "manipulated".
"I looked up to this man but he didn’t really care about me. I felt like he was taking advantage of me but I felt I had to listen to him because he was Huw Edwards," he claimed.
On Edwards' guilty plea, he added: "Last year I was still protecting him and I didn’t really understand his true nature.
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Huw Edwards appeared in court this week in an unrelated case where he pleaded guilty to making indecent images of children
PA
"But then hearing this news, all those nagging doubts were confirmed.
"It made my stomach drop. I felt genuinely sick to my stomach I thought, is this real? When I heard the actual details of things, it just got worse and worse and worse."
Edwards was suspended from the BBC over the claims and resigned from the broadcaster in April.
