DJ Tim Westwood accused of sexual assault and misconduct

DJ Tim Westwood accused of sexual assault and misconduct

DJ Tim Westwood is facing multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse across three decades by women who were in their late teens and early twenties.

The BBC documentary on the allegations will air at 9 pm tonight, entitled Tim Westwood: Abuse of Power.

The 64-year-old is accused of decades worth of predatory and unwanted sexual behaviour between 1992 and 2017.

Westwood denies these allegations.

A BBC and Guardian investigation saw seven black women come forward with their experiences with the DJ.

Two of the women said they tavelled to London to meet with the DJ to discuss music in separate instances when he took them to his flat, removed his clothes, and initiated unwanted and unprotected sex.

Another woman said she was 17 when she met Westwood, who was then in his mid-30s, who allegedly subjected her to unwanted oral sex.

Other young women accused the DJ of inappropriate and unwanted touching during photographs being taken at nightclubs and events.

None of the women who made allegations know each other. Some work in the music industry and fear the DJ still having a prominent role in an industry that has faced many accusations of unfair treatment towards black women.

Allegations about Westwood’s behaviour toward young black women have circulated on social media for some time.

Westwood issued a statement to the Mail Online in 2020 hitting out at the “fabricated allegations”, addind that they were false and without foundation.

The investigation hears the women describe in detail their encounters for the first time, with them all feeling that they couldn;t come forward before as they wouldn’t be believed.

Westwood is known for giving a platform to new artists, as well as getting some of the biggest rappers in the world onto his programmes.

He eventually left the BBC in 2013 as part of scheduled changes.

In a Freedom of Information request, BBC News asked the BBC whether it had received any complaints against Westwood during his time in its employment.

The corporation said it could “neither confirm nor deny whether the BBC holds the requested information”.

In a statement on the investigation, the BBC said “it does not comment on individuals”, but added that presenters would be expected to comply with strict codes of conduct.

Westwood, 64, continues to perform at nightclubs around the UK and internationally, hosts freestyle sessions and interviews on his YouTube channel and has a Saturday night show on Global’s Capital Xtra.