14 Feb 2014

DJ acquitted on sex charges

7:32 am on 14 February 2014

British disc jockey Dave Lee Travis has been cleared by a jury of 12 charges of sexual assault in the latest failure for a police inquiry in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal.

Dave Lee Travis after the verdict.

Dave Lee Travis after the verdict. Photo: AFP

Travis, 68, was found not guilty of 12 indecent assault charges, while the jury could not reach a verdict on two other charges at Southwark Crown Court in London on Thursday.

Prosecutors must decide whether to ask for a retrial for the former BBC star on the two remaining charges.

Travis showed no emotion as the verdicts were read out. He had denied all 14 charges dating back to 1976.

The trial heard accusations that Travis had assaulted girls while live on television and in his radio studio.

He argued that it would have been "insane" to grope someone on TV.

Travis, whose real name is David Patrick Griffin, spent 25 years presenting on BBC Radio 1, and also hosted a music request show on BBC World Service radio.