A man accused of a plot to kidnap, rape and murder Holly Willoughby said “restraining and getting” the TV presenter was his “ultimate fantasy for way too long”, his trial has heard.
Gavin Plumb, 37, appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court on Monday after being charged in October with soliciting a man to commit murder, incitement to kidnap and incitement to rape.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC told jurors the shopping centre security officer’s past convictions – including tying a 16-year-old girl’s hands behind her back with rope and tape, and the attempted kidnap of women on a train with the threat of a gun – showed he knew “what it would take to terrify and overpower a woman”.
The 37-year-old is accused of conspiring online with another man – encouraging him to travel to the UK from the US to carry out the alleged offences – and creating a “detailed plan”, including to assemble a “kidnap and restraint kit”.
Plumb, of Harlow, Essex, denies all charges.
Ms Willoughby has waived her right to anonymity in connection with an accusation against Plumb of assisting or encouraging rape.
Day two of the trial
Live updates from court will resume in just over two hours when the court sits again.
Gavin Plumb is accused of plotting to kidnap, rape and murder Holly Willoughby.
The shopping centre security officer, of Potters Field, Harlow, will appear at Chelmsford Crown Court shortly.
Alex Ross25 June 2024 08:13
We will resume live updates when court sits again at 10.30am tomorrow
We are pausing our blog and will be resuming live updates when court sits again at 10.30am tomorrow.
Please follow The Independent’s homepage for all the latest in the meantime.
Tara Cobham24 June 2024 17:02
Full story: Holly Willoughby ‘obsessed’ man made kidnap kit with knife, handcuffs and chloroform, court told
An “obsessed” security guard who purchased a ‘kidnap kit’ and chloroform to abduct, rape and murder Holly Willoughby knew how to “terrify and overpower a woman”, a court heard.
Gavin Plumb, 37, had previously attacked women using both a knife and an imitation firearm before he formulated a detailed plan to kidnap and kill the television personality in a home invasion.
A trial heard it was his “ultimate fantasy” to target Ms Willoughby, 43, and he had purchased metal cable ties, a knife and chloroform – a liquid drug used to stupefy victims – in preparation for an alleged attack.
Crime correspondent Amy-Clare Martin has the full story from Chelmsford Crown Court:
Tara Cobham24 June 2024 16:50
Court adjourns for day
Court has adjourned for the day at Chelmsford Crown Court.
The trial of Gavin Plumb will continue at 10.30am tomorrow.
Tara Cobham24 June 2024 16:33
Kidnap plans – which involved ‘catastrophic violence’ – were interrupted by arrest, court told
Ms Morgan KC told Chelmsford Crown Court: “The defendant’s planning of these offences was interrupted by his arrest. He never got to the point of encountering Holly Willoughby.
“She did not meet him and the offences that the Prosecution alleges against this defendant, which if carried out would have involved catastrophic violence against her, were disrupted.”
Amy-Clare Martin at Chelmsford Crown Court24 June 2024 15:44
When arrested, jurors told Plumb said: ‘I’m not gonna lie. She’s a fantasy of mine.’
The defendant was arrested on 4 October last year after the undercover US officer alerted the FBI and the Metropolitan Police.
He was shocked when police arrived at his home in Harlow, Essex, the court heard.
When the charges were explained to him, he responded: “I’m not gonna lie. She is a fantasy of mine.”
Amy-Clare Martin at Chelmsford Crown Court24 June 2024 15:42
Plumb had 10,322 images of Holly Willoughby on his phone, court hears
Police who analysed Gavin Plumb’s mobile phone found that he had 10,322 images of Holly Willoughby in a folder called “Holly”, a court heard.
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC told Chelmsford Crown Court: “There was a folder in fact on the defendant’s telephone which was called ‘Holly’ and it contained 10,322 images of Holly Willoughby.”
She said that officers explained to Plumb that charges related to a conspiracy to kidnap Ms Willoughby and he responded: “I’m not gonna lie. She is a fantasy of mine.”
Tara Cobham24 June 2024 15:30
Defendant shared video of ‘kit’ including shackles, ball gag and cable ties, court told
Plumb shared a video with an undercover police officer of his “kit” laid out on a bed.
Alison Morgan KC told the court the footage showed equipment including hand and ankle shackles, a ball gag, rope, metal cable ties and handcuffs.
Amy-Clare Martin at Chelmsford Crown Court24 June 2024 15:22
Plumb bragged about his previous crimes against women, court told
Chelmsford Crown Court heard that the security guard bragged about his previous convictions against women to an undercover officer online.
Plumb told the officer he had held two women against their will at a warehouse in a bid to bolster his credibility.
“I got 16 months. Our justice system is s*** tbh,” he told the officer.
Amy-Clare Martin at Chelmsford Crown Court24 June 2024 15:17
Security guard planned to take Holly Willoughby to ‘dungeon’, court told
A shopping centre security officer planned to kidnap TV presenter Holly Willoughby and take her to a “dungeon” where her “screams can’t be heard for miles”, a court heard.
Gavin Plumb is accused of hatching a plot to kidnap, rape and solicit the murder of the star, and allegedly considered trying to get employment as her security guard to get close to her.
A court heard that the 37-year-old described it as his “ultimately fantasy” to kidnap Ms Willoughby, adding: “Fantasy isn’t enough anymore. I want the real thing.”
Tara Cobham24 June 2024 15:16