Ex-BBC presenter guilty of stalking broadcasters including Jeremy Vine and Radio Northampton’s Bernie Keith

Judge tells Alex Belfield to expect jail over nine-year ‘campaign of harassment’
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A former BBC radio presenter has been told to expect jail after being found guilty of stalking four broadcasters including Jeremy Vine and Radio Northampton’s Bernie Keith.

Alex Belfield, 41, went on trial accused of waging a relentless nine-year “campaign of harassment” against BBC staff after being axed in 2011.

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A court heard he bombarded colleagues with vile emails, tweets, messages and uploaded videos to his Youtube channel, called The Voice of Reason.

Alex Belfield has been found guilty of a nine-year 'campaign of harassment' against BBC staff including Jeremy Vine and Bernie Keith (right)Alex Belfield has been found guilty of a nine-year 'campaign of harassment' against BBC staff including Jeremy Vine and Bernie Keith (right)
Alex Belfield has been found guilty of a nine-year 'campaign of harassment' against BBC staff including Jeremy Vine and Bernie Keith (right)

BBC Radio 2 and Channel 5 presenter Vine cried in the witness box when he gave evidence telling how Belfield launched “an avalanche of hatred”.

He described Belfield as the “Jimmy Savile of stalking” and said his actions saw him lose sleep, fearing for his family and trolled over the death of his dad.

Vine said: “Watching this man is like swimming in sewage. I found it shocking and distressing and it made me worried.

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“This is absolutely Olympic level stalking, even for broadcast. This is the Jimmy Savile of trolling.”

The court heard Belfield also falsely claimed that Vine had “stolen” £1,000 of licence fee payers' money to put towards a memorial for radio executive John Myers.

Jurors were told Belfield began targeting BBC workers after losing his job at Radio Leeds in 2011.

His actions were said to have caused his victims "serious alarm and distress" which impacted their daily lives due to the "ferocious and relentless" abuse.

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On Friday (August 5) Belfield, of Mapperley, Notts, was found guilty of four counts of stalking. He was cleared of stalking four other colleagues.

He remained emotionless in the dock as the verdicts were returned after more than 14 hours of deliberations.

Belfield was found guilty of stalking to cause alarm and distress to Bernie Keith and videographer Ben Hirst.

In relation to Jeremy Vine and blogger Philip Dehany, he was cleared of stalking to cause alarm and distress but found guilty of simple stalking.

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Belfield was warned to expect a custodial sentence when he appears at Nottingham Crown Court to learn his fate on September 16.

Granting him bail, Mr Justice Saini added: “I would remind you Mr Belfield you need to be extra cautious about anything you say in terms of online communications.”

During the trial, the court heard Belfield had made made a string of “distressing and gratuitous” allegations about former colleagues.

Prosecutor John McGuinness QC said: “The alleged victims did not want to be contacted by Alex Belfield, they did not want to see or hear or know what it was that he was saying about them.

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“But he went ahead and did it anyway, relentlessly harassing them, knowing or being aware he was harassing them - to the extent that what he did caused them serious alarm or distress which affected their daily lives for the worse.

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"It is not suggested the defendant’s conduct involved physical stalking, although such was the effect of what Alex Belfield did that some were, in fact, worried about the possibility of Mr Belfield turning up at their homes.

“The stalking which this case is concerned with is of a different type – and is more akin to internet trolling."

Belfield, who represented himself, declined to give evidence during his trial.