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Essex Police has released chilling footage of the moment when Gavin Plumb, the man accused of an online kidnap, rape and murder plot involving Holly Willoughby, was arrested.
An officer’s body camera shows police forcing entry into the 37-year-old’s home in Harlow, Essex on October 4.
Plumb, who is shirtless and watching TV, is heard asking ‘what the hell is going on’ before it is explained he is being apprehended on suspicion of conspiracy to kidnap Willoughby, 43.
Upon hearing the former This Morning presenter’sname, Plumb responds: ’I’m not going to lie, she is a fantasy of mine.’
It comes as Plumb gave evidence for the first time during the trial at Chelmsford Crown Court today.
He told the court he got a ‘rush of excitement’ about the thought of keeping Willoughby in a ‘dungeon’ but insisted it was ‘online chat.’
During the proceedings, Plumb said his ‘dark’ discussions were ‘massively regrettable’ but insisted the alleged plans were ‘a fantasy’ and not real.
The defendant also said he bought bottles of chloroform to clean a ‘large stain next to my fridge’ and purchased a BDSM kit, including a set of handcuffs, in 2014 ‘to rekindle my relationship with my ex-partner.’
He apologised for the ‘graphic and violent’ contents of some of the chats, and said some of the words he had used were a way to ‘get my gratification, move on.’
Plumb also told the jury he did not ask a man who turned out to be an undercover officer for ‘help’ in carrying out the alleged plot.
In court yesterday, the undercover police officer who discussed the alleged rape, kidnap and murder plot of Willoughby said he felt there was a ‘real threat’ to the TV star.
The witness, who has been granted anonymity to protect his and his family’s safety and ‘his effectiveness as an undercover officer’, was sent an image of what he described as an ‘abduction kit.’
‘At that point in the conversation it was quite alarming,’ the officer, from the Owatonna Police Department in the US state of Minnesota, told the court. He passed on Plumb’s information to the FBI, which contacted the Metropolitan Police.
On Wednesday June 26, objects that he purchased with the alleged intent of using them on the Dancing On Ice presenter were revealed, including handcuffs, a blindfold, and cable ties.
The court heard how Plumb had been looking into booking a tour atITVStudios, questioning in a message whether the tour would entail meeting the presenters working for the broadcaster.
During the proceedings, other messages were read from Plumb where he wrote about finding ‘a stud farm that’s abandoned’ to ‘keep her’, which he said had ‘cells’.
His disturbing online searches were also revealed, which included terms such as ‘killers from Harlow in Essex’, ‘have you ever been sexually assaulted or raped when you have been spiked’.
It was previously reported during the trial that Plumb, had planned on taking Willoughby, to a ‘dungeon’ where her ‘screams can’t be heard for miles’.
At the trial on Tuesday, the court heard a WhatsApp message that Plumb wrote, where he detailed plans to track down Willoughby’s ‘movements’ and described a home invasion as a ‘better idea’.
The message, which was read to the jurors by Morgan KC, was sent in 2021 to a man called Marc, who police believe was based in Ireland.
Plumb and Marc were said to have exchanged 57 images of Willoughby within 46 WhatsApp messages from January 12 until January 19 2022.
Prosecutor Morgan KC said that nine of these images were ‘deepfake p*rnography’, while others featured ‘two other female celebrities and four images of unknown women tied up’.
‘One image displays the words “hurting women is fun” across it. Plumb and Marc also continue sexualised discussions about Ms Willoughby,’ the prosecutor said.
Another message read: ‘Just the thought of finally getting her [Ms Willoughby] is turning me on I’m actually looking forward to doing it.
‘I’m at the point where idc [I don’t care] about the risks or consequences.’
The jury also heard that Plumb searched ‘how to meet people who plan to kidnap celebrities’ on September 11 2011, more than 10 years before his alleged scheme to kidnap Willoughby emerged.
Plumb is accused of attempting to live his ‘ultimate fantasy’ and has been described by the prosecution as someone who had an ‘obsession with Willoughby.
The defendant, of Harlow, Essex, denies soliciting murder, incitement to rape and incitement to kidnap.
On October 10 last year, Willoughby announced that she had decided to leave This Morning, shortly after the details of the alleged kidnap plot emerged.
In her statement announcing the news, she said: ‘To everyone who has ever worked on the show over the years, thank you so much. This is such a difficult goodbye, you are incredible and I forever will be proud of what we’ve done together.
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The trial continues.
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