The ‘murderer’ on MasterChef
Accused man with celebrities on top BBC show
A CHEF accused of murdering four young men he met on gay websites once appeared on Celebrity MasterChef.
Stephen Port, 40, was shown serving up meatballs when the BBC programme was filmed in the bus garage cafe he worked at.
He was on screen last June with EastEnders actress Emma Barton and JB Gill, a former member of X Factor boy-band JLS. Port, who is bald, appeared to be sporting a blond wig underneath his white hat.
His brush with fame emerged yesterday as an Old Bailey judge ordered him to stand trial for murder in April.
Port is said to have invited the four victims back to his flat and given them fatal doses of the party drug GHB, known as liquid ecstasy. He appeared in court via videolink from Pentonville prison in north London and was remanded into custody.
The body of the first alleged victim, aspiring fashion designer Anthony Walgate, was found yards from Port’s flat in Barking, East London, last June.
The 23-year-old from Hull was in his second year of an art, fash- ion and design course at the University of Middlesex.
The bodies of Gabriel Kovari, 22, and Daniel Whitworth, 21, were found in the grounds of St Margaret’s Church in Barking in August and September respectively. An inquest found that they had GHB and methadone in their systems.
The body of Jack Taylor, a forklift operator from Dagenham, was found in the ruins of Barking Abbey last month.
Yesterday Port’s sister Sharon, 43, told how her brother, who advertised himself as a £100-anhour gay escort, lived with their parents until he was 30.
She said: ‘When he got his flat, it was like he wanted to make up for lost time. He has loads of partners. He goes from one to another. He has got a lovely nature.’ Last night Scotland Yard issued an appeal for witnesses. Detective Chief Inspector Tim Duffield said: ‘We are keen to trace anyone who may have information.
‘I would encourage anyone with information to come forward, no matter how insignificant you may think it is. If you have any reservations, please rest assured that your call will be treated in the strictest confidence.’