A reality star has been locked up after he shared a sex tape on his Only Fans account. Stephen Bear also sent a clip of the tape of him having sex with Love Island star Georgia Harrison to his Whatapp account.
Now he has been jailed for one year and nine months after being convicted of two counts of revenge porn and one count of voyeurism. He had denied the offences but was convicted by a jury following a trial in December.
The 33-year-old, who won Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, and 28-year-old Ms Harrison were captured having sex on CCTV cameras in Bear’s garden on August 2 2020. Ms Harrison, who has appeared on The Only Way Is Essex, Love Island and Olivia Meets Her Match, has waived her right to anonymity.
Bear, who boasted about his “amazing performance” in the recording, was due to be sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court last month, but it was put back so he could be assessed by a psychiatrist. His barrister Gemma Rose told the court on Friday he has since been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) with symptoms including a “lack of internal control, impulsive nature and hypersensitivity” as well as mixed anxiety and depressive disorder.
A report states Bear suffers from “grandeur and distorted thinking” and “periods where he has detachments from reality, finding it easier to believe fantasy in his head rather than deal with the reality of the situation he finds himself in”. The court was told Bear had told probation staff he was “ashamed” about his behaviour on reality TV shows where he had “humiliated” women - but he had “been who the show wanted him to be”.
Ms Rose added his “persona and behaviours” has “allowed him to gain more television work”.
Judge Christopher Morgan, sentencing Stephen Bear, said the disgraced reality TV personality “wished to exploit the economic value of the recording” of Bear and Georgia Harrison having sex. He said: “I’m sure that you recognised the enhanced economic value to you by having Georgia Harrison, a well-known reality TV and social media personality, in the video.
"She would have been known and recognised by many people.” He said that the defendant caused Harrison “extensive humiliation and embarrassment”.
After Bear was jailed, he raised a hand to wave from the secure dock, and said: “Have a good evening. Enjoy the weekend everyone.”
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Following the sentencing, Hannah von Dadelszen, deputy chief crown prosecutor for CPS East of England said: “I want to commend Georgia Harrison for the bravery and determination she has shown throughout this case. By contrast, Stephen Bear showed a complete lack of remorse by never accepting responsibility for his abusive behaviour, even going so far as to place the blame on Ms Harrison.
“Although she lives a public life, Georgia Harrison has the right to privacy. But that was taken away by Bear to make money in the most egregious way.
“Whether or not sex is consensual, it is a crime to share or threaten to share sexual images without consent to cause distress. This is a serious offence which has a lifelong impact on victims. Those like Bear who use devices to share photos or videos or threaten to do so can expect to be prosecuted.
“We want to encourage victims to come forward, safe in the knowledge they will have lifelong anonymity and can have special measures put in place when appearing in court, like giving evidence from behind a screen.”
Miss Harrison, now 28, attended the sentencing hearing to give a victim impact statement. She said she had always been cautious about taking explicit content and described the leak as her “worst nightmare”.
Miss Harrison said: “When I first saw the screenshot of the footage and realised it had been sold online by him I felt physically sick. I was crying on and off for hours and suffered panic attacks.
“The scale of how widespread the video was, was just unimaginable. I had people approaching me or referencing me literally everywhere. My head was always whirling with thoughts of what was going on and the fear that more of the footage could surface at any second.
“The clear lack of remorse or empathy from Bear was soul-crushing. To think he intentionally filmed me and sold footage knowing how much it would affect me has left me feeling hurt, embarrassed, insignificant and insecure in many ways.
"I simply do not have the confidence I used to. It makes me feel sick to think so many people have watched it.”
She said she has been living with her mum for the last two years as she is “too scared” to return to her own home in Essex, as she “can’t stand to be near” Bear.
She added: “He is so impulsive and I’m afraid as I really don’t know what he’s going to do next. It’s my hope this case sets an example to the younger generation that this sort of behaviour is not acceptable and there will be serious consequences for those who choose to act in such a way.”
Prosecutor Jacqueline Carey KC said the offending was aggravated by the “ostentatious manner” Bear attended his trial and his lack of remorse.
During the trial, Bear arrived at the courthouse in a chauffeured white Rolls Royce and on the first day of trial wore a baby pink suit. He arrived at the courtroom door today on foot in an all-black outfit and accompanied by his fiancée Jessica Smith, who also attended every day of the trial with Bear’s parents.
The court previously heard Bear met Miss Harrison in 2012 but started dating in October 2018 after appearing on MTV’s The Challenge together. By July 2019 had split.
Miss Harrison said she had gone to Bear’s house in Loughton, Essex, on August 2, 2020 for a cup of tea and ended up on an all-day drinking session before returning to Bear's house. She said they had sex in the garden but she had "absolutely no idea" he had CCTV in the garden.
A clip was uploaded to Only Fans on November 8 with the caption: “Morning everyone. Can’t wait for you to see me f****** in my garden. Here’s a sneak peak. I will be dropping this video tonight.”
It was said 273 people had viewed the video for $9.99 each - making Bear around £2,800. Overall Bear made just shy of $50,000, or £40,000, on Only Fans from October 2020 up until its deactivation in early December.
On the day the footage was uploaded, the account was said to have raised the subscription fee from $7.50 to $50, before lowering it to $20.
During the trial, the ex-roofer admitted Miss Harrison did not know she was being recorded or consented to it being uploaded to the internet. She told the court that when Bear showed it to her later that evening she asked him not to share the footage with anyone and to delete it.
Giving evidence, Bear denied being responsible for putting it on Only Fans - adding he had not seen evidence the video was ever uploaded. He was arrested as he landed at Heathrow from Dubai in January 2021.
Prosecutors said Bear’s phone, which has never been recovered, could have been “flushed down the plane toilet” shortly before he was arrested. A restraining order was also made, banning Bear from contacting Miss Harrison for five years, and he was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years.
The judge said a Proceeds of Crime hearing will take place on July 24.
