Tim Westwood interviewed over sexual assault allegations

12 April, 2023

Tim Westwood

Tim Westwood has been interviewed under caution by police in relation to five sexual offence allegations that date back over 40 years.

As the Guardian reports, the former BBC Radio 1 DJ, 65, was interviewed by the Metropolitan Police in March and again last week about offences he allegedly committed in London between 1982 and 2016.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Met said: “Police are investigating five reports relating to allegations of non-recent sexual offences allegedly committed by a man. The offences are alleged to have occurred in London between 1982 and 2016.

“A 65-year-old man was interviewed under caution on 15 March 2023 and 4 April 2023. There has been no arrest.”

The statement did not name Westwood, who worked as a DJ at Radio 1 between 1994 and 2013.

It is reported that the allegations span the period of Westwood’s employment at Capital Xtra and the BBC.

Tim Westwood performs on stage during Wireless Festival 2019 on July 07, 2019 in London, England. CREDIT: Lorne Thomson/Redferns

In April of last year, Westwood was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women in a joint investigation by the Guardian and BBC News. Westwood strenuously denied all the allegations. A spokesperson also told the Guardian at the time that the claims were completely false.

The DJ stepped down from his Capital Xtra radio show shortly afterwards. Last summer, the BBC revealed that it had received six allegations of misconduct against Westwood, one of which was handed over to police.

In a further investigation, the BBC News documentary Hip Hop’s Open Secret: Tim Westwood, the DJ was accused of having sex with a 14-year-old girl when he was in his 30s.

Additionally, another woman came forward to detail what she described as a “controlling” relationship when she was 16 and Westwood was in his 40s. Two others claimed they were sexually assaulted by Westwood when they were in their mid-teens.

In response to the initial BBC documentary, a spokesperson for the DJ said: “Our client confirms that there has never been any complaint made against him, whether officially or unofficially, relating to claims of inappropriate behaviour of the nature described.”