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| British Police Arrest High Profile Entertainer in Sex Abuse Inquiry | British Police Arrest High Profile Entertainer in Sex Abuse Inquiry |
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| LONDON — In the latest twist in the sexual abuse scandal that has shaken Britain’s public broadcaster, one of the country’s best known television entertainers, Rolf Harris, a singer and artist who once painted a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, has been arrested on suspicion of unspecified sexual offenses, British news reports said on Friday. | |
| Mr. Harris, 83, was arrested on March 28 as part of the investigation, Operation Yewtree, which the police opened last year following hundreds of allegations of sexual abuse against Jimmy Savile, a onetime disc jockey and television personality who died in 2011 at the age of 84. | Mr. Harris, 83, was arrested on March 28 as part of the investigation, Operation Yewtree, which the police opened last year following hundreds of allegations of sexual abuse against Jimmy Savile, a onetime disc jockey and television personality who died in 2011 at the age of 84. |
| Like Mr. Savile, Mr. Harris had been known to successive generations of Britons and Australians as an affable, if quirky, national treasure, a fixture on television and entertainment shows who played on his Australian roots and his skills as an artist and musician. | Like Mr. Savile, Mr. Harris had been known to successive generations of Britons and Australians as an affable, if quirky, national treasure, a fixture on television and entertainment shows who played on his Australian roots and his skills as an artist and musician. |
| Bearded, bespectacled and slightly breathless in his presentation, Mr. Harris’s performances ranged from quick-fire sketches to music-making with instruments from the Australian outback such as the tubelike didgeridoo. He worked for many years on BBC programs but started his latest show on the commercial Channel 5 in 2012. | Bearded, bespectacled and slightly breathless in his presentation, Mr. Harris’s performances ranged from quick-fire sketches to music-making with instruments from the Australian outback such as the tubelike didgeridoo. He worked for many years on BBC programs but started his latest show on the commercial Channel 5 in 2012. |
| When detectives began Operation Yewtree, they divided abuse allegations into three main categories: those involving Mr. Savile himself, Mr. Savile along with other suspects and “others” accused of acting on their own. Mr. Harris, who has reportedly vehemently denied wrongdoing, fell into the category of “others,” according to a police statement in March that did not identify him by name. | When detectives began Operation Yewtree, they divided abuse allegations into three main categories: those involving Mr. Savile himself, Mr. Savile along with other suspects and “others” accused of acting on their own. Mr. Harris, who has reportedly vehemently denied wrongdoing, fell into the category of “others,” according to a police statement in March that did not identify him by name. |
| Claims that Mr. Savile abused some victims on the premises of the British Broadcasting Corporation, and missteps by the corporation in coverage of the affair, plunged the broadcaster into a crisis that inspired a series of inquries and cost former Director General George Entwistle his job. | Claims that Mr. Savile abused some victims on the premises of the British Broadcasting Corporation, and missteps by the corporation in coverage of the affair, plunged the broadcaster into a crisis that inspired a series of inquries and cost former Director General George Entwistle his job. |
| While the police did not name Mr. Harris publicly, social media sites had been buzzing with speculation about him since officers searched his home in Berkshire outside London last November while he was not present. Police have arrested 12 people in Operation Yewtree, many of them associated with the entertainment business. | While the police did not name Mr. Harris publicly, social media sites had been buzzing with speculation about him since officers searched his home in Berkshire outside London last November while he was not present. Police have arrested 12 people in Operation Yewtree, many of them associated with the entertainment business. |
| A police statement on March 28, two days before Mr. Harris’s 83rd birthday, said: “An 82-year-old man from Berkshire was arrested by officers on Operation Yewtree on suspicion of sexual offenses. | A police statement on March 28, two days before Mr. Harris’s 83rd birthday, said: “An 82-year-old man from Berkshire was arrested by officers on Operation Yewtree on suspicion of sexual offenses. |
| “He has been bailed to a date in May pending further inquiries. The individual falls under the strand of the investigation we have termed ‘others.'” | “He has been bailed to a date in May pending further inquiries. The individual falls under the strand of the investigation we have termed ‘others.'” |
| Mr. Harris was first identified by name on Friday by The Sun newspaper, and the BBC followed suit, having previously refrained from identifying him for what the broadcaster called “legal reasons.” The BBC said Friday that the entertainer had not been formally charged with an offense. | Mr. Harris was first identified by name on Friday by The Sun newspaper, and the BBC followed suit, having previously refrained from identifying him for what the broadcaster called “legal reasons.” The BBC said Friday that the entertainer had not been formally charged with an offense. |
| The Sun said more than a million people had watched Mr. Harris’s most recent television appearance on Wednesday in a show called “Animal Clinic” about distressed animals. | The Sun said more than a million people had watched Mr. Harris’s most recent television appearance on Wednesday in a show called “Animal Clinic” about distressed animals. |
| Mr. Harris, an Australian who moved to Britain in 1952, made his name decades ago with humorous and sentimental songs, such as “Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport,” “Jake the Peg,” and “Two Little Boys,” a song composed in 1902 about childhood friends who later became soldiers in the American Civil War. | Mr. Harris, an Australian who moved to Britain in 1952, made his name decades ago with humorous and sentimental songs, such as “Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport,” “Jake the Peg,” and “Two Little Boys,” a song composed in 1902 about childhood friends who later became soldiers in the American Civil War. |
| In 2005 he unveiled a portrait he had painted of the Queen at Buckingham Palace as she approached her 80th birthday, showing her smiling, silver-haired and dressed in a turquoise-green jacket. | In 2005 he unveiled a portrait he had painted of the Queen at Buckingham Palace as she approached her 80th birthday, showing her smiling, silver-haired and dressed in a turquoise-green jacket. |
| Last month, a British police oversight agency accused the police of failures over five decades that permitted Mr. Savile to escape investigation for a lifetime of sex offenses dating back to the early 1960s. The report detailed poor police procedures, missed opportunities and an unwillingness to pursue accusations against one of the country’s biggest celebrities, whose renown also inhibited victims, most of them girls, from coming forward. | Last month, a British police oversight agency accused the police of failures over five decades that permitted Mr. Savile to escape investigation for a lifetime of sex offenses dating back to the early 1960s. The report detailed poor police procedures, missed opportunities and an unwillingness to pursue accusations against one of the country’s biggest celebrities, whose renown also inhibited victims, most of them girls, from coming forward. |
| “One of the reasons why allegations were not made at the time, or investigations were not conducted as they might have been, centers on Savile’s status,” the report said. “He was a well-known national celebrity, praised for his substantial fund-raising efforts, and a household name to many.” | “One of the reasons why allegations were not made at the time, or investigations were not conducted as they might have been, centers on Savile’s status,” the report said. “He was a well-known national celebrity, praised for his substantial fund-raising efforts, and a household name to many.” |
| The revelations since then about his predatory sexual behavior have shocked Britons, who watched his popular BBC programs for decades, including “Top of the Pops,” a weekly music countdown, and “Jim’ll Fix It,” in which Mr. Savile promised to grant young viewers’ wishes. | The revelations since then about his predatory sexual behavior have shocked Britons, who watched his popular BBC programs for decades, including “Top of the Pops,” a weekly music countdown, and “Jim’ll Fix It,” in which Mr. Savile promised to grant young viewers’ wishes. |