West Ham‘s billionaire co-owner David Sullivan has been accused of preying on a string of women, some in their teens, during his time as a newspaper chief.
Mr Sullivan resigned from his post at the club over the weekend after learning of the investigation that has collected the allegations, which span decades and date back to the 1980s.
Seven women have given detailed accounts of experiences they claim to have had with Sullivan as young models seeking work on his Sunday Sport and Daily Sport newspapers.
They accuse Sullivan of sexually exploitative and predatory behaviour, including pressuring them for sex or oral sex during business meetings by suggesting it would aid their careers. Sullivan denies the allegations.
The BBC also reports that Sullivan, 77, has separately admitted to paying for sex in the 1990s with a girl who he understood to be 16 or 17 years old.
He was in his 40s at the time, and it only became illegal to pay for sex with a 16 or 17-year-old in 2003.
Sullivan, one of the country’s richest men after building his fortune on porn, newspapers and football, quit West Ham over the weekend, while protesting his innocence, after BBC Panorama and The Times confirmed they would be publishing the findings of their joint investigation.
He said he ‘categorically’ denies all the allegations, and vowed to sue any media outlet that repeats them. Sullivan currently retains his 38.8 per cent stake in West Ham.
West Ham co-owner David Sullivan has been accused of abusing a number of women and preying on them for sex
Sullivan, pictured left alongside former joint chairman David Gold, said he ‘categorically’ denies the allegations
Sacha Wall is the only alleged victim who wanted to be named
Sacha Wall is the only alleged victim of Sullivan’s predatory behaviour who wanted to be named.
She claims that, as a 24-year-old aspiring model, Sullivan tried to pressure her into a sexual encounter by suggesting it would advance her career.
Ms Wall said that in 1998, she was invited to Sullivan’s Essex mansion for what she had believed would be a business meeting.
She recalled being surprised to find him dressed very informally, in flip-flops, red shorts and a t-shirt.
Sullivan leafed through her modelling portfolio while repeating ‘very nice, very nice’, in a way that made her uncomfortable, Ms Wall claims.
She says he then instructed her to follow him upstairs and undress down to her underwear – which she did, because she was interested in seeking topless modelling work.
He then allegedly told her to come and sit next to him – at which point she moved away and put her bra back on.
When she told him she would not sleep with him, she claims he looked ‘very shocked’ and replied: ‘What, not even a b**w job?’
Ms Wall said she was ‘really scared’ to find the door locked when she tried to leave, but that Sullivan opened it when she demanded to be let out.
She later appeared in his Sport newspaper, but said she was often given the worst jobs.
Sullivan ran the Daily and Sunday Sport newspapers in the late 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, and it was while seeking modelling work at his titles that the women claim they were abused
This is Sullivan’s mansion in Essex, which is where a number of the incidents are alleged to have happened
A 1990s-era modelling shot of Ms Wall, from around the time she claims he tried to pressure her into a sexual encounter
Sullivan stepped down from his post at West Ham over the weekend after learning the investigation would be published
A woman, whose name has been changed to Anna by the publishers of the investigation, appeared in the Sport the month after her 17th birthday. She entered the Miss Sport competition, which involved sending photos into the newspaper.
She was then invited to an event at an Essex nightclub, which she attended with her mother as a chaperone.
At the venue – where the entertainment included women dancing on tabletops surrounded by large groups of ‘touchy-feely’ men – she claims she was invited to go for a private chat with Sullivan.
He allegedly asked the 17-year-old to give him a ‘b**w job’, promising he would make her a ‘star’ – but she refused.
Another alleged victim, whose name was changed to Florence, claimed that Sullivan ‘took away her innocence’ when she was pressured into sleeping with him in 1999.
Sources who worked in the industry at the time reportedly said Sullivan’s nickname was ‘B**w Job or No Job’, due to his reputation for expecting sexual favours in exchange for access to the vast opportunities he could offer aspiring models.
But Florence, then 20 and trying to break into the industry, said she was oblivious to this – and so went trustingly to his Essex home, dressed smartly and with her boyfriend for support.
Sullivan allegedly took her upstairs and tried to initiate sex – with Florence attempting to resist by saying she was on her period and that he partner was waiting for her in the house.
But Sullivan pressed on anyway, she claims.
She said she would be forever ‘haunted’ by the image of Sullivan lifting his pinky into the air and saying: ‘It’s alright, I’ll only put it in a little bit,’ before penetrating her.
Florence said she was almost certain she was telling him she did not want to have intercourse, but could not say how loudly.
She claims that he promised she would be one of his ‘regular girls’ in his Sport newspapers if she had sex with him – and that she was indeed subsequently offered work.
Florence said: ‘He took away my innocence. What he did set me off on a spiral that went for many, many, many, many years.’
She said she believes Sullivan’s alleged predatory behaviour went unchallenged for so long because was ‘untouchable’, adding: ‘He might not look it on paper, but my God, is that man powerful.’
Sullivan, who once described himself as a ‘collector of women, like some people collect stamps’, was a titanic figure for anyone hoping to crack the glamour modelling industry in the 1990s.
He began selling photographs of topless women in the 1970s through a mail-order business from an east London warehouse.
This soon progressed into selling pornographic magazines and, in 1973, Sullivan pleaded guilty to the charge of conspiring to publish and post obscene materials.
But Sullivan was undeterred, and his porn empire rapidly expanded, until by the end of the decade he was selling more than a million porn magazines each month.
He went on to launch Sunday Sport in 1986 – which featured topless models plastered on many of the pages, among sensational tabloid stories – and later Daily Sport after enjoying enormous success.
A notorious feature of his newspapers was the ‘Countdown to 16’, which chronicled the number of days until a schoolgirl’s 16th birthday, and then pictured her topless when the day arrived.
In his resignation statement, Sullivan said: ‘I have recently become aware that factually incorrect and entirely false, decades-old allegations concerning my personal life are due to be broadcast and published.
‘The false allegations levelled against me have been sensationalised by the media. After a lifetime spent building businesses in the adult industry in which I have met thousands of women, it is sadly inevitable that a small number of improper conduct claims are being made against me.
‘I categorically deny these claims.
‘I am a private man, and those who personally and professionally know the real David Sullivan, not the caricature invented by the tabloids, know exactly who I am and what I stand for. I am absolutely not the person the media has decided to paint me as.
‘I have not been provided with any proper explanation as to how these individuals or their claims were independently verified or assessed for credibility prior to publication. I believe that the entire process has been fundamentally unfair and completely lacking in any due impartiality.
‘I will be suing the BBC for libel, along with any other media outlet that repeats any libelous allegations.’
In response, the BBC said: ‘BBC Panorama and The Times newspaper have been working together on a joint investigation into the behaviour of David Sullivan, who has announced he is stepping down as joint-chair and director of West Ham United FC.
‘Over decades, he’s made millions from pornography, newspapers, and football. The investigation is due to be broadcast and published on Monday.’
It is thought that a boardroom power struggle may now ensue, with Czech co-chairman Daniel Kretinsky understood to harbour reservations over a mooted plan for Sullivan’s two sons, Jack and David, to replace him.
Indeed, Kretinsky, who has a 27 per cent stake, may seek to increase his holding and take control of the club.
As things stand, Sullivan retains his 38.8 per cent share in the club. In April, his right-hand woman Karren Brady quit the club.
Over a season of turmoil Hammers fans frequently protested against Sullivan and Brady amid toxic scenes. Following relegation a firesale of players is expected, along with substantial redundancies.
A separate statement from West Ham said Sullivan ‘has taken the decision to step down in order to avoid disruption to the club while he addresses the matter privately’.
They added that Interim chief executive officer Karim Virani ‘will continue to be responsible for leading the club’s day-to-day operations’.
