TOWIE star Georgia Harrison has shared her relief after her ex, Stephen Bear, was found guilty of multiple offences.
Ms Harrison had accused the Celebrity Big Brother winner of sharing an intimate video of the two of them and said he put her through two years of “absolute hell”.
3
3
In a statement she said: “The only way to describe how I am feeling now is relieved.
“The last two years have been absolute hell and this verdict will allow me to start to put the pain I have suffered in the past and start embracing the future.
“Bear’s behaviour was completely unacceptable and those who choose to commit such crimes should and will be prosecuted.”
The brave star added: “We are living in a time where so much of our lives and our children’s lives are spent online and it is so important that individuals are protected in the virtual world just as they are in reality.
“Social media has given us the egalitarian belief that we are all publishers but what it hasn’t done is regulate what we should responsibly publish.
“I hope me taking a stand gives other men and women who have fallen victim to revenge porn the courage to seek justice and most importantly show them that they have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.
“I have felt ashamed, hurt, violated, even broken at times but today I stand here feeling empowered, grateful and a huge sense of unity with all of those who have reached out to support me throughout this ordeal.”
Read Related Also: British pound hits a 37-year low as UK economy skids
She went on to thank Essex Police and her lawyer for helping secure the guilty verdict.
Mr Bear, 32, was convicted today of voyeurism and two counts of disclosing private sexual photographs or films at Chelmsford Crown Court.
Ms Harrison had been unaware that he had recorded the two of them having sex on a CCTV camera in his garden.
The video was then shared to a number of social media sites in December 2020, including adult content platform OnlyFans, at which point she reported it to the police.
Mr Bear made at least £40,000 from sharing the clip before he was arrested in January 2021, despite being begged not to release it by the victim.
He has been released on bail ahead of sentencing at the same court on January 31 next year.
Speaking after the verdict today, Andrew Young, Senior Crown Prosecutor from CPS East of England, said: “Stephen Bear exploited his relationship for his own gratification by sharing a private video without the victim’s consent.
“Bear understood his actions were wrong and showed an utter disregard for the victim, going on to gaslight and mock her.
“Sharing private sexual images without consent is illegal and has a profoundly damaging impact on victims. I commend the victim’s bravery in reporting this abuse, and I hope today’s result brings her some sense of justice.”
3
!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;
n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version=’2.0′;n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,
document,’script’,’
fbq(‘init’, ‘752905198150451’);
fbq(‘track’, “PageView”);
