Billionaire West Ham co-owner accused of abusing his power and preying on women for sex

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: West Ham co-owner accused of preying on women for sex15 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleBilly Kenber ,Hannah PriceandSophie Smith , Panorama 'He said I could be one of his special friends': Ex-model tells about meeting with David SullivanWarning: this story includes descriptions of alleged sexual misconduct and explicit languageMultiple women have accused billionaire businessman and West Ham co-owner David Sullivan of abusing his power and preying on them for sex, in some cases when they were teenagers. The allegations from seven women have been uncovered in a joint investigation by Panorama and the Times and span decades, starting in the 1980s. All come from women who were in their late teens or early twenties and were young models seeking work at Sullivan's Daily and Sunday Sport newspapers.

They accuse Sullivan of sexually exploitative and predatory behaviour, including pressuring them for sex during business meetings, where he offered to boost their careers if they slept with him or gave him oral sex. One of them, Florence (not her real name), said she felt forced to have sex with him even though she did not want to. Sullivan, 77, said he "categorically" denies the claims, which span the period when he made a fortune from pornography, newspapers and football.

The Details

On Saturday, hours after Panorama and the Times confirmed we would be publishing this investigation on Monday, he resigned as joint chair of West Ham. He said he wanted to focus on fighting what he called "factually incorrect and entirely false, decades-old allegations concerning my personal life", describing the investigation as "fundamentally unfair". We can also reveal that Sullivan has separately admitted paying for sex in the 1990s with a girl who, he says, he believed was 16 or 17 years old.

Sullivan was in his 40s at the time. It only became illegal to pay for sex with a 16 or 17 year old in 2003. In the 1980s and 90s, Sullivan was a powerful gatekeeper for women hoping to have a career in glamour modelling.

Florence said he had told her during a business meeting at his home that she would be one of his newspapers' "regular girls" if they had sex. Then aged 20, she tried to make excuses, including that she was on her period, before he manoeuvred her into a bedroom and started having sex with her, she said. Lawyers for Sullivan described her account as implausible.

Two women said they felt they had no choice but to sleep with him to avoid damaging their future modelling careers, and accused Sullivan of abusing his power. "He was taking advantage of young people," one said. Getty ImagesDavid Sullivan faces accusations from multiple women who had been young models seeking workAnother former model said when she had tried to leave a meeting with Sullivan after he propositioned her for sex, she found the door was locked, and he only let her go after she began raising her voice.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.