Vietnam searches for Gary Glitter

Authorities in Vietnam today said they were searching for disgraced pop star Gary Glitter to investigate his alleged relationship with a teenager.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung said officials had confirmed that Glitter, 61, whose real name is Paul Francis Gadd, was residing in a home in southern Vung Tau city and had applied for permanent resident status in Vietnam.

Glitter, who rose to glam-rock fame in the 1970s, was convicted in Britain in 1999 for possessing child pornography and permanently expelled from Cambodia in 2002.

Dung said Glitter had left the house on November 12, and police were seeking his whereabouts.

Dung said authorities had conducted interviews with a 15-year-old girl who they found in the home rented by Glitter.

“If evidence of a (legal) violation is found against Mr Paul Francis (Gadd), and especially evidence of sexual child abuse, I believe that very strict legal measures will apply to him,” he said.