Max Clifford, one of Britain’s most well-known PR gurus who had represented actress Shilpa Shetty soon after her Big Brother win, has been charged with indecent assault involving teenage girls as young as 14.
The alleged offences concern seven different young women and girls ranging in age from 14 to 19 years old and are said to have taken place between 1966 and 1985.
The celebrity publicist vowed to clear his name over the “completely false” allegations.
“The allegations in respect of which I have been charged are completely false and I have made this clear to the police during many, many hours of interviews,” he said, speaking outside his home in Surrey today.
“Nevertheless a decision has been taken to charge me with 11 offences involving seven women, the most recent of which is 28 years ago and the oldest 47 years ago. I have never indecently assaulted anyone in my life and this will become clear during the course of the proceedings,” he added.
The 70-year-old was arrested in December under Scotland Yard’s Operation Yewtree, set up following allegations about former British television personality Jimmy Savile’s conduct during his career as a presenter on BBC.
Clifford, whose arrest forms a separate strand from the Savile inquiry, relates to allegations involving seven different women and girls ranging from 14 to 19 years between 1966 and 1985.
Scotland Yard said he was charged after answering bail at a London police station this week following advice from the Crown Prosecution Service. He has been released on bail and is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 28.