The brother of paedophile Rolf Harris's youngest victim has said he is sorry his sister never lived to see him die in prison.
Paul Wild is “incredibly proud” of Wendy Wild, who was eight when the disgraced artist and entertainer groped her at a disco in Portsmouth.
She was one of the first to have approached police about the shamed entertainer, when Operation Yewtree was launched, in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal.
Wendy died in 2019 aged 57 from a brain aneurysm, which is often triggered by stress. Paul, 64, told the Mirror : “I’m only sorry that my sister went before him really.
“She was a troubled child and I didn’t know why. But after the Jimmy Savile case she felt empowered to come forward. It was a battle for her but once he had gone to prison she felt it was job done.”
Evil Harris was convicted in 2014 of 12 counts of indecent assault on four girls. They included mum-of-five Wendy, two girls in their early teens and abuse against his daughter’s friend which took place over 16 years.
The Court of Appeal overturned the conviction against Wendy in 2017, because the credibility of a witness was called into question. The witness was the only person to corroborate her story.
"She was so stoic and she was just happy he was in jail,” Paul said. “A technicality does not change the facts of what he did to her. She had done her job and prompted others to come forward, and I was really proud of her.
“It’s regrettable she’s not here to see that he’s died, but we’re not throwing parties and neither is my brother-in-law.
“Wendy put her head above the parapet and, irrespective of the appeal, she was happy she’d done her bit and he was behind bars.
“I think she was one of the first, if not the first, to come forward. Which really took a lot of bravery. A jury found him guilty and she helped get him into the dock, that’s what’s important.”
Paul was at the same disco in 1969 when his sister was abused. The former CCTV operator said he felt “guilt” for not being able to protect her, as he was elsewhere in the building when the assault took place.
Wendy threw away the autographed paper after the assault, after she was left traumatised by the groping.
Paul was at every day of the trial. He said: “What I listened to from the judge in his summing up, the level of detail of what Harris had done and how he had done it - it will stay with me for the rest of my life.
“It is seared into my brain. What he did to his daughter’s friend, it was shocking beyond belief. My sister got off lightly in comparison."
Harris went on to write a song in prison in which he accused his victims of trying to cash in on the events. He had hoped to publish and release the track.
Wendy was upset by a letter he sent from jail in which he addressed victims with the line ‘perhaps you think you are pretty, still some perfumed sultry wench,’ and later branding them ‘worms.’ The letter was sent to the Australian entertainer's friend.
Wendy responded in verse herself, saying: “You chose to remember me 40 years ago. You put your dirty hands on me and have not let me go. I still live with the nightmare of your dirty act while all you seem to care about is that your millions stay intact.
“Threats from you don’t seem to stop and continue to be said. Private investigators watching me fill my heart with dread.
“All this has taken its toll and it’s me who has to squirm as just when I thought you could get no lower, you sing that I’m a worm.
“If you think this song will make you another hit, you’re wrong. You’re just a sex offender now put that in your song and sing it.”
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