Savile Friend Guilty of Sex Crimes

A Manchester DJ who abused his celebrity status to groom and then rape underage girls has been convicted of a number of historic sex offences.

Over more than 30 years, Ray Teret from Altrincham, used nightclubs and youth discos across Manchester as a hunting ground to meet young and impressionable underage girls. He would then take them back to his flat and rape them.

The 73 year old's been convicted of seven counts of rape and 11 counts of indecent assault.

He was found guilty of abusing 11 different women from the 1960s to the 1990s.

Teret was a friend of Jimmy Savile's and his offending finally came to light following the publicity surrounding the scandal involving Savile. Moved by what she had seen on the news, the first of Teret's victims contacted police in October 2012 and Teret was arrested the following month. The ensuing publicity caused a domino effect and a number of his other victims then came forward.

Detective Chief Inspector Graham Brock said: "This case has attracted a lot of media interest due to Teret's status and friendship with the late Jimmy Savile. And it is clear that Teret revelled in his association with Savile and used that cult of celebrity to meet - and rape - impressionable underage girls.

"We also must acknowledge that it was the Jimmy Savile scandal, and the mass publicity it generated, that encouraged these women to break their decades of silence and speak out, exposing Teret for the dangerous sexual predator he is. There are no positives to take from Savile's appalling crimes, but by prompting Teret's victims to come forward, someone who is still alive has now been brought before the courts and finally made to answer for their heinous crimes.

"But it is important we look past the lurid headlines. We need to focus on the the victims who not only suffered appalling abuse at the hands of Teret, but also suffered in silence for decades, fearing they would not be believed, that it was their fault or that it would tear their families apart.

"These women have bravely relived the trauma they endured and given evidence in a courtroom, which can be a very intimidating and adversarial environment. They each had the courage to speak out about Teret and I would like to pay tribute to each of them. After years of living with these horrible memories, uncertain of how to make sense of what Teret did, they now have the official recognition that they were abused and it is testament to their bravery that justice has at last been done.

"Teret was a man who abused his celebrity status in the worst way imaginable. The girls he preyed upon were naïve and inexperienced and in thrall of who he was. Some have described it as like being with royalty or like going to bed with James Bond. Teret traded off that status and treated the clubs he performed in as hunting grounds to meet his victims. Once he had raped them, he discarded them like objects and moved on to his next victim.