A YOUNG male contacted by Huw Edwards on Instagram as a schoolboy told The Sun he felt like he had a “lucky escape”.
He spoke to us last July and revealed the disgraced BBC news presenter had contacted him out of the blue by sending a love heart emoji.
Edwards then continued to converse with the child, who was 17 at the time and still at school, and put kisses on the end of messages.
Speaking last night, the now 23-year-old said: “I was utterly shocked to see what came out in court about Huw.
“It is distressing to think back to the messages we exchanged that this could have ended a lot differently.
“At the time it felt creepy and knowing what I know now, I feel like I had a lucky escape.
“My thoughts are with the victims and the people affected.”
Back in 2019, he had even asked Edwards about appearing on the BBC’s School Report, saying “It’s my last year of school and sounds like it might be fun.”
Edwards was involved in the programme, for children keen on getting into journalism, until 2017.
The star, suspended in July 2023 after we reported he paid a young person for sexually explicit images. said he should go for it “no question”.
Edwards pleaded guilty on Wednesday over indecent images of children in a separate case.
Yesterday, the BBC’s Culture and Media Editor Katie Razzall told viewers: “Remember, Huw Edwards wasn’t just the face of news and some landmark national moments.
“He was also, for example, involved with the BBC’s School Report up until 2017.
“That was a programme where schoolchildren were encouraged to make news.
“Alarm bells must have been ringing at the BBC as soon as it found back in November that he was being investigated by the police over those images involving child sexual abuse — the most serious crimes.”
The lad he contacted as a schoolboy told The Sun last year that Edwards — whose Instagram account included an image of him in a sweat-soaked boxing gym pose — got in touch with no prior contact in October 2018.
The boy had an interest in current affairs so followed him on Instagram but was “stunned” to receive a message from such a high-profile BBC employee.
He sent a love heart emoji to me and I was taken aback
He told us: “He sent a love heart emoji to me and I was taken aback. Looking back now at my reply, I can tell I did not think anything of it because of my age.
“I was just thinking of it innocently because I had a keen interest in their line of work.
“I replied to the love heart emoji he sent and asked how it was going at the BBC. He replied saying it was good and he used a kiss at the end of his message.
“I did think it was a little strange that he used a kiss at the end but, ultimately, I was not reading into these messages in that way and so did not think more about it.
“In light of what I know now, it feels as though when he realised I was not flirtatious back, he changed the way he would reply.”
