A former kids TV presenter, who worked alongside Fearne Cotton and Reggie Yates in the 90s, has been convicted of rape in addition to the deaths of two people in a fatal high-speed car crash.
Paul Ballard was found guilty of raping a woman in his hotel room and threatening to kill her after he told her that she was “dying tonight”.
The 39-year-old is currently awaiting sentencing for the rape charges after he was convicted following his trial at Chelmsford Crown Court.
The TV star, who is most known for his role as Des on Diggit from 1998 to 2002, was found guilty of rape, attempted rape, assault, criminal damage and threats to kill.
(Image: MET POLICE/UNPIXS (EUROPE))
During his trial, the court heard how he attacked the woman in a hotel room in Hatfield Heath, Essex, in the early hours of the morning on September 19, 2020.
Despite the horrific attack, his terrified victim managed to escape the room and inform a member of staff about the incident who then called the police.
However, the star denied raping and threatening the victim and instead claimed the pair had consensual sex.
Following his trial, Detective Constable Dan Lambert who led the investigation into the attack, shared his thoughts on the case with the press.
He told reporters: “Ballard has never taken responsibility for his actions – indeed he continued to deny them throughout the trial.
“It is telling that the jury arrived at a verdict within two hours. I hope this provides some comfort to his victim who he subjected to a terrifying ordeal that night in September last year.”
This comes after the assailant was imprisoned this week after he pleaded guilty to two counts of death by dangerous driving.
Ballard was sentenced to nine years in prison following the fatal crash on February 20, 2020.
The TV star had taken cocaine before driving between “88mph and 104mph” in a 30mph zone accompanied by his 12-year-old son when the pair collided into the back of Ms Haskell’s Ford Kuga.
Eight cars were involved in the collision at 1pm that afternoon, which took the lives of two people and injured at least seven others.
The first victim, Ms Haskell, was pronounced dead at the scene and the second victim, Richard Trezise, was pronounced dead just one hour later.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
