Gary Glitter freed from jail after serving half of his 16 year sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls

3 February 2023, 10:25 | Updated: 3 February 2023, 11:07

Gary Glitter has been freed after serving half his 16-year sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls.
Gary Glitter has been freed after serving half his 16-year sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls. Picture: LBC / Alamy

By Danielle DeWolfe

Disgraced pop star Gary Glitter has been released from jail after serving half of his sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls.

Glitter, 79, real name is Paul Gadd, was found guilty of the abuse by a court in 2015 and sentenced to sixteen years in prison.

The paedophile glam rock singer - who had a string of chart hits in the 1970s - left HMP The Verne on Friday.

A low security category C jail in Portland, Dorset, Glitter had served eight years behind bars before being released half-way through his fixed-term determinate sentence.

At trial, the singer was was found guilty of one count of attempted rape, one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl under 13, and four counts of indecent assault - later losing a Court of Appeal challenge against his conviction.

The sex offender will now be subject to strict licence conditions.

Gary Glitter has been freed after serving half his 16-year sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls.
Gary Glitter has been freed after serving half his 16-year sentence for sexually abusing three schoolgirls. Picture: PA

Born on May 8, 1944 in Banbury, Oxfordshire, the singer scored a string of hits with songs including Rock 'n' Roll and Do You Wanna Touch Me.

The star was at the height of his fame when he preyed on his vulnerable victims who thought no-one would believe their claims over that of a celebrity.

Read more: Gender-neutral toilet deemed 'favourable' to men as judge rules council discriminated against female clerk

Read more: Chicago woman accused of storing her mother's body in garage freezer for two years after death was recorded in calendar

The disgraced icon went on to attack two girls, aged 12 and 13, after inviting them backstage to his dressing room and luring them away from their mothers.

The third victim was under 10 years old when he tried to rape her in her bed in 1975.

The historic allegations only came to light nearly 40 years later - the first person to be arrested under Operation Yewtree.
The historic allegations only came to light nearly 40 years later - the first person to be arrested under Operation Yewtree. Picture: LBC / Alamy

The historic allegations came to light nearly 40 years after they occurred, with Glitter the first person to be arrested under Operation Yewtree.

The special police investigation was launched by the Metropolitan Police in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal.

Sentencing the singer, Judge Alistair McCreath said all the victims were "profoundly affected" by the abuse.

The judged added it was "difficult to overstate the gravity of this dreadful behaviour" when referring to the assault on one victim, telling

He added Glitter was able to attack another "only" because of his fame.

Glitter's fall from grace occurred years earlier after he admitted possessing 4,000 child pornography images and was jailed for four months in 1999.

In 2002, he was also expelled from Cambodia amid reports of sex crime allegations.

More Latest News

See more More Latest News

Lydia Mugambe is accused of taking 'advantage of her status'

UN judge ‘trafficked woman to UK to be her slave’

Anonymous posters have appeared in Hampstead Heath, a park in north London, calling for gay men to stop using the park for sex.

'Take back Hampstead Heath', dog walkers urged as posters appear calling for men to stop using park for sex

Gavin Nicholls was tackled to the ground by a plain-clothed officer outside the Co-op in Barnet

Moment serial shoplifter is tackled off e-scooter by police as he flees store in north London

The plane, which was carrying 80 people, slid down onto the icy runway at Toronto Pearson International Airport before bursting into flames

Horrifying video shows moment Delta plane crashes on tarmac and bursts into flames at Toronto airport

Healey's comments came following Russia-US Peake talks in Saudi Arabia.

UK facing 'new era of threat' from Russia, Defence Secretary says as he unveils ‘biggest military shake up in 50 years’

Passengers escape Flipped over Delta plane after it crashed while landing in Toronto

'We were hanging upside down like bats': Survivors reveal fear and chaos inside flipped over Delta plane

England's top judge slams Starmer and Badenoch over Gaza family immigration comments

'Judges aren't free from criticism': Backlash after England's top judge attacks Starmer's migrant remarks

Craig and Lindsay Foreman

British couple on round-the-world motorbike adventure charged with espionage by Iranian authorities

An assistant referee has been charged with child sexual offences.

Assistant referee for FA Cup and football league games charged with child sexual offence

Corinna Schumacher, right, has broken her silence on the case involving a plot to reveal Formula One star Michael Schumacher's health secrets.

Michael Schumacher's wife breaks silence after three men guilty of blackmail plot to reveal F1 legend's health secrets

Doctor Who

Doctor Who faces axe as Nucti Gatwa 'quits' show amid drop in ratings over 'woke' storylines

Pope Francis

Pope Francis cancels weekend engagements as hospital stay extended

Bristol, UK. 19th Mar, 2020. Petrol now under £1 a litre as the drop in oil prices hits the forecourt. 99.9p a litre at Costco, Avonmouth, Bristol. Credit: Julian Kemp/Alamy Live News

Ten people injured after 'noxious substance' thrown in Costco as police hold teenage suspect

Alhaurin El Grande Malaga Province Spain Church of Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación

Heartbreak as Brit pensioner, 90, 'starves to death in her Spanish home' as son, 63, 'found dead in property'

E-scooters are currently illegal to use on the public highways including pavements.

E-scooters blamed for 'shocking' surge in uninsured teen riders with 2,000% increase in offences

Thames Water has won court approval for a £3 billion emergency debt package as the nation's biggest water company scrambles to avoid collapse.

Thames Water handed £3 billion lifeline as court approves restructuring plans to save it from financial collapse