The scale of the child sex abuse scandal engulfingthe BBC expanded on Thursday as authorities announced that 300 potentialvictims had come forward with accusations against one of the broadcaster's mostpopular children's entertainers and that others might have acted with him.
The scandal swirling around one of Britain's most respectednews organizations also prompted a spirited defense from New York Timeschairman and publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. of the paper's incoming CEO, theformer top executive of the BBC.
In a letter to staff, Sulzberger said he was satisfied thatMark Thompson, who was the BBC's director general until last month, had no rolein the decision to scrap an investigative segment about the abuse allegationsagainst the late Jimmy Savile.
The well-known children's TV and radio host is accused ofusing his fame to coerce teens into having sex with him in his car, his camperand even in dressing rooms on BBC premises.
Police Commander Peter Spindler, head of the Scotland Yardinquiry into the scandal, said Thursday that 300 potential victims had comeforward so far and even more were expected to contact authorities. He said allbut two of the cases involved girls and that detectives had interviewed 130people.
The police commander acknowledged he had been stunned by thevolume of abuse allegations reported to his team of 30 officers in the threeweeks since accusations about Savile's activities first came to publicattention.
"It is quite staggering, the number of women ... andthis is primarily women; we have only got two men in the system so far,"Spindler said.
Spindler said Savile, who died last October at age 84, was"undoubtedly" one of the worst sex offenders in recent Britishhistory.
Since the allegations aired on British television thismonth, London police have received three times the usual number of calls aboutallegations of past sexual abuse. "I have no doubt that we are in awatershed moment for child abuse investigations," Spindler said.
Previously feted for his charity work at hospitals and homesfor children, Savile is alleged to have deliberately supported such causes totarget troubled youths whose credibility would be questioned if they reportedthe alleged sexual abuse.
Spindler said that although the majority of cases related toSavile alone, some involved the entertainer and other, unidentified suspects.In addition, some potential victims who reported abuse by Savile also toldpolice about separate allegations against unidentified men that did not involvethe BBC host.
He confirmed that police could seek to prosecute any suspectswho are still living but said no one has been arrested or questioned so far.
Spindler also revealed that a retired London police officerhad contacted Scotland Yard to report that he investigated Savile in the 1980safter a young woman accused him of assaulting her inside his trailer while itwas parked on BBC premises. The ex-officer said there hadn't been sufficientevidence to prosecute Savile at the time, Spindler said.
Police have also discovered that a woman contacted ScotlandYard in 2003 to allege that Savile had touched her inappropriately in the 1970sbut did not seek to press charges. In addition, authorities acknowledged thatSavile was questioned in 2007 over an allegation tied to a school in Surrey butprosecutors declined to bring charges.
The Savile scandal has rocked the BBC and prompted disbeliefthat the TV host's crimes could have gone unnoticed or unreported by colleaguesor managers.
Thompson, the incoming New York Times CEO, who was BBCdirector-general from 2004 until last month, is among those facing questionsfrom lawmakers. Thompson has insisted he never met Savile, was unaware ofrumors about his behavior and had little knowledge of the expose that wascanceled late last year just as other BBC divisions were planning tributes tothe late entertainer.
In his letter to Times staff, Sulzberger said Thompson hadthoroughly explained his handling of the issue.
"Mark has provided a detailed account of that matter,and I am satisfied that he played no role in the cancellation of thesegment," Sulzberger wrote.
"Our opinion was then and remains now that he possesseshigh ethical standards and is the ideal person to lead our company," theletter said.
For almost 20 years, Savile made children's dreams come trueon a popular TV show, "Jim'll Fix It." He was also the original hostof the music program "Top of the Pops," which ran from 1964 to 2006,featuring performances by everyone from The Rolling Stones to the Sex Pistols.
Savile championed a host of good causes, frequently runningmarathons to raise money. He helped to collect millions for the creation of anational spinal injuries center at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in southernEngland and bequeathed money for a heart unit at Leeds infirmary called theSavile Institute.
He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services tocharity and entertainment and received a papal knighthood from the Vatican.Prince Charles was among those who paid tribute when Savile died last year.