Chelsea will meet victim of sex abuse
Gary Johnson to have his say
GARY JOHNSON, the man who exposed the culture of child sex abuse at Chelsea in the Seventies, will meet club chairman Bruce Buck this week as part of Chelsea’s ongoing attempts to support the affected players.
Johnson, 59, was sexually assaulted by Chelsea’s then chief scout Eddie Heath from the age of 13 and the scandal affected at least 23 youth team players, who gave evidence to the clubco-mmissioned independent inquiry which was published last week.
The report said Chelsea were wrong to insert a nondisclosure agreement into Johnson’s £50,000 settlement in 2015 for his abuse while under the club’s care.
But it also said the club did not intend to silence Johnson if he wished to go public. He did so in 2016 and Chelsea immediately freed him from the confidentiality clause.
Johnson, who is a London taxi driver, made his initial complaint in 2013 after a late-night chat with a lawyer he was driving home, who advised him to take his claims to the police.
The impact of him coming forward and then speaking out about the abuse he suffered at the hands of Heath was substantial. It led to the most high-profile investigation of the ongoing sex abuse scandal in English football and publication of last week’s report by Charles Geekie, QC.
Though Johnson says speaking out has taken an emotional toll on all those close to him, including his wife Maryce and grown-up children, he has no regrets.
‘ If one person had come forward after I spoke out it would have been great,’ he said. ‘ But 23 victims took part in the report and I’m overwhelmed. I thought there might be five or half a dozen. But 23 heroes have come forward.
‘Without a question of doubt [I am hopeful]. I was shocked by the numbers, by all the heroes that have come forward.
‘I’m in this situation of being a spokesperson and I don’t relish it. I didn’t ask for it.’ Compensation claims for players affected are being settled by the club’ s insurers but Chelsea are instigat
ing an ongoing programme of psychological support, counselling andre-training. Johnson is expected to discuss that with Buck this week, as well as talking about why he initially felt let down by the club’s response to his claims and the insert i on of a confidentiality clause, which the club now accept was inappropriate.
It is possible the survivors, all of who mother than Johnson have remained anonymous, may meet up to discuss the way forward.
Speaking of the culture at the club while Heath presided as chief scout in the Seventies, Johnson said: ‘Everyone knew what he was like and at that time everyone rolled their eyes and shrugged their shoulders but no one did anything. It was the era.’
The scandal only came to light in the wake of the reporting around prolific child abuse perpetrated by Jimmy Savile in 2013.
‘ Jimmy Savile was big news at the time and I had a lawyer in the back of my cab,’ he said. ‘It was quite a journey, around 45 minutes, and I just told him I wanted advice.
‘He asked me what about and I told him I’d been abused at a famous football club. By then we were at his home and even though it was late we kept talking for around 25 minutes. He advised me to take it to the police.’