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Topics: Gary Lineker, BBC, UK News
Callum Jones
Topics: Gary Lineker, BBC, UK News
Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker has denied he is the BBC presenter accused of paying for explicit photos from a teenager.
In a report released by The Sun newspaper earlier this week, a BBC male presenter is said to have paid a teenager tens of thousands of pounds for photographs, beginning when they were 17-years-old.
The mother of the alleged victim told the paper that her child, who is now 20, had used the money from the presenter to fund a drug habit.
She claimed they had gone from a 'happy-go-lucky youngster to a ghost-like crack addict' in three years.
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It was also reported that the alleged victim complained to the BBC on 19 May, but went to The Sun after becoming frustrated with the broadcaster.
The alleged presenter has not been named up until this point, with rumours swirling online as to who it may be.
Now, Gary Lineker - one of the highest paid presenters at the BBC - has denied it is him.
Taking to his Twitter account on Saturday (8 July), Lineker told his followers: "Hate to disappoint the haters but it’s not me."
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The denial comes just a few months after the MOTD presenter was embroiled in his own BBC controversy, after he criticised the UK government’s handling of the migrant crisis by comparing it to Germany in the 1930s.
While Lineker did miss one week of the week football highlights show, he swiftly returned after many of his BBC colleagues went on strike as Lineker was kicked off air.
As for the allegations coming from The Sun, many other presenters have come out in recent days to deny they are involved.
Rylan Clark, who has hosted a number of television shows, including Eurovision coverage, since his rise to fame on The X Factor, has said his name is among those which have been mentioned.
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Also taking to Twitter yesterday, Clark wrote: "Not sure why my names floating about but re that story in The Sun - that ain’t me babe.
"I’m currently filming a show in Italy for the BBC, so take my name out ya mouths."
The BBC is now believed to be looking into the allegations, with the accused star set to remain off the air in the coming days.
A spokesperson for the broadcaster commented: "We treat any allegations very seriously and we have processes in place to proactively deal with them.
"As part of that, if we receive information that requires further investigation or examination we will take steps to do this.
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"That includes actively attempting to speak to those who have contacted us in order to seek further detail and understanding of the situation.
"If we get no reply to our attempts or receive no further contact that can limit our ability to progress things but it does not mean our enquiries stop.
"If, at any point, new information comes to light or is provided - including via newspapers - this will be acted upon appropriately, in line with internal processes."