Jamie Oliver under fire for hiring convicted child rapist

Jamie Oliver has defended hiring a convicted child rapist to one of his restaurants ahead of thousands of other disadvantaged applicants.

David Mason, 24, was 19 years old when he forced himself on a 12-year-old girl while the pair were playing video games.

The West London man initially denied raping the girl but confessed and was sentenced to two years in jail.

Mason has now been hired to work in the celebrity chef's Fifteen restaurant in London under an apprenticeship program designed to "help young people stay out of trouble and make something of their lives".

Former friends of the rapist have expressed anger after he boasted about the job on Facebook saying it was "disgusting" other disadvantaged applicants missed out.

"I know he served his time but everyone is sickened he’s got a golden opportunity ahead of people who haven’t committed a horrible crime, and the way he is showing off on Facebook," one friend reportedly told The Sun.

A spokesman for Jamie Oliver said the chef was aware of Mason's criminal background but said he deserved a chance to put his past behind him.

"He was completely honest about his past when he applied and we decided that, as he’d served his sentence, he should be allowed a place on the programme," a Jamie Oliver spokesman said.

"It is not unusual for us to work with people who want to try to turn their lives around. David spent two years in prison and two years doing probationary work with the Prince’s Trust, so four years of punishment.

"We took great care deciding whether he was appropriate and he is six weeks into the course and doing very well."

Jamie Oliver was awarded an MBE in 2003 for the apprenticeship scheme aimed at setting the winner on the course to becoming a top chef.

Source: The Telegraph, Daily Mail
Author: Matthew Henry. Approving editor: Nick Pearson.