Dan Wootton denies catfishing claim by 'former colleague'

Dan Wootton denies catfishing claim by 'former colleague'

Broadcaster and journalist Dan Wootton has strongly refuted allegations made against him in a legal claim filed earlier this year. The claim, brought by a man granted anonymity by the High Court, accuses Wootton of impersonating a woman named Maria Joseph in 2009 to deceive him into sending explicit photographs and a video. The claimant asserts that Wootton, posing as Maria Joseph, exchanged sexualised messages to persuade him to share intimate content.

According to the claimant’s statement, contact was made via email, SMS, and Facebook, with the man believing he was communicating with a real woman. The interactions reportedly escalated into flirtatious and sexualised exchanges, during which Wootton allegedly sent images of a partially or fully naked woman, purportedly representing Maria Joseph. The man also claims to have received a video featuring a sexual encounter, again under the pretense that the female participant was the person he believed he was engaging with online.

In response, Wootton’s official court documents deny all accusations. He rejects any communication with the claimant through any channel, including social media or messaging services. Wootton also denies ever possessing any explicit photos, videos, or flirtatious messages from the man. Furthermore, Wootton contests the claim that the man genuinely believed he was exchanging messages with someone named Maria Joseph, citing evidence that the claimant himself expressed doubts about the identity of “Maria.”

The anonymous claimant is pursuing legal action on grounds of pain, injury, humiliation, and emotional distress allegedly caused by Wootton’s conduct. He reports suffering from major depressive disorder and increased alcohol use as a consequence. Wootton disputes these assertions, stating he does not accept any injury resulted from the alleged communications. Moreover, Wootton denies ever having worked alongside the claimant, arguing that the case is baseless and should be dismissed because of the substantial delay in bringing the matter to court

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