A former frontman for Spandau Ballet, Ross William Wild, is facing a prison sentence after being convicted of raping one woman and attempting to rape another.
Ross Davidson, 37, took on lead vocal duties for the 1980s band during a 2018 tour. He performed under the stage name Ross William Wild.
Spandau Ballet singer Ross William Wild found guilty for rape and sexual assault
At Wood Green Crown Court today (January 28), jurors heard that Ross carried out the attacks because he believed he was entitled to “sex on demand”.
Ross had denied the charges, pleading not guilty to the rape of a woman in London in March 2015. He also denied the attempted rape and sexual assault of another woman in Thailand in December 2019. He maintained that the encounters were consensual.
After more than 11 hours of deliberations, the jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts on all charges.
Prosecutor Richard Hearnden told the court that Davidson had been viewed by some as “a bit of a sex symbol”. However, he said the two complainants described encountering a far darker side to his character.
Mr Hearnden added that despite Davidson’s success and reputation as “charming and charismatic”, he believed he was entitled to sex. When that expectation was not met, the prosecutor said, Davidson was prepared to resort to rape and sexual assault to get what he thought he deserved.
‘They were scared to react’
Davidson told the court he met both women through the dating app Tinder. He said they maintained that every sexual encounter was consensual.
He described himself as “sex positive”. Ross explained that he understood the term to mean having “open dialogue” and being “open-minded about people’s predilections”.
One of the women, who was raped, told jurors she awoke to find Davidson assaulting her while she slept in his bed at his London home.
She said she felt “helpless” and was “scared to react” during the attack. The jury also heard that before the incident, Davidson had spoken to her about an interest in sex with “a person in a helpless state, someone not moving”.
In addition to the convictions now returned, Davidson had previously admitted to a separate voyeurism offence relating to December 2019, after secretly filming the woman in Thailand while she slept.
As of this writing, the other members of Spandau Ballet have yet to respond to the news.
Read more: Tony Hadley ‘bullied’ by Spandau Ballet bandmates and Martin Kemp feels ‘guilty’
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