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Stephen Bear: Reality star released on bail after arrest over ‘revenge porn’ allegations

Bear was arrested on Friday (15 January) at Heathrow airport

Annabel Nugent
Sunday 17 January 2021 04:29 EST
(Rex Features)

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Reality TV star Stephen Bear has been released on bail following his arrest on suspicion of revenge porn.

Bear was arrested on Friday (15 January) at Heathrow airport upon his return from Dubai, where he had been residing since last year.

The Ex on the Beach star faces allegations of revenge porn, after being accused of filming himself having sex with his ex-girlfriend and fellow reality TV personality Georgia Harrison and sharing the footage. 

Revenge porn – defined as revealing private sexual images or videos online or offline without the consent of the person with the aim of provoking distress – was made a criminal offence in 2015. Perpetrators of revenge porn face jail sentences of up to two years.

A spokesperson for Essex Police confirmed to Metro.co.uk that Bear has been released from custody.  

“A 31-year-old man from Loughton, who was arrested on suspicion of disclosing private sexual images or film without consent with intent to cause distress, voyeurism, harassment and obstructing a police officer, has been released on bail until 10 February,” said the spokesperson.

Following news of Bear’s arrest, Harrison posted a photo of herself in tears on Instagram, accompanied by a caption that read: “Nothing about current circumstances feel good, even the wins hurt me so much because as an empath I just want to see the best in everyone and want the best for everyone.”

Harrison first made the allegations in December, sharing a social media post in which she claimed that Bear had recorded the footage without her knowledge. She went on to say that he had CCTV around his house and that he “purposely got in position where he knew it would be on CCTV”.

“I feel hurt, I feel violated, I feel embarrassed but I also feel like my friends and followers will support me through this and I can’t stay silent on the matter any longer,” she added.

Bear has previously denied the allegations made against him, stating that “anyone saying they’ve seen footage of me and her, now that’s complete lies”.

The Independent has contacted a representative of Bear's for comment.

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