Latest news with #Brixton-born
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sugababes' Keisha Buchanan's ex set for trial next year on harassment and controlling behaviour charges
Sugababe Keisha Buchanan's footballer ex-partner is set to stand trial next Spring over claims he harassed the singer and controlled parts of her life. Taiwo Leo Atieno, 39, is accused of blocking the singer from wearing red lipstick, watching TV and going to the gym, and allegedly controlled what she ate when they were in a relationship. After the breakdown of the romance, it is said he harassed her with texts, emails and social media contact, as well as an alleged request for £25,000. He is also accused - in criminal charges spanning a decade - of attacking Ms Buchanan. Atieno appeared on Thursday at Harrow Crown Court for a preliminary hearing, when Judge Charles Bourne KC set the case down for a five-day trial starting on April 13 next year. The defendant appeared for the hearing on a videolink from HMP Wormwood Scrubs, having been held in custody since first being charged last month. The judge agreed on Thursday that he could be released from prison to await his trial, as long as he abides by bail conditions including the surrender of his passport. Ms Buchanan, 40, was one of the original members of Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhan Donaghy, and was part of the band as they became one of the 21st Century's most successful pop acts. She enjoyed chart-topping hits such as Round Round and Push the Button, before ultimately being forced out of the band in 2009. Ms Buchanan had solo success before reuniting with her former bandmates under the title Mutya Keisha Siobhan – and together they seized back control of the Sugababes name in 2019. Atieno was a professional footballer who made appearances for Kenya in qualifiers for the World Cup and African Cup of Nations. The Brixton-born forward made appearances for Walsall, Tamworth, Luton Town, Stevenage and Torquay United before retiring in 2013, and he also had spells playing in Puerto Rico and Rochester in New York state. He is charged with controlling and coercive behaviour towards Ms Buchanan between December 2015 and May 2018, assault occasioning actual bodily harm between January 2012 and January 2015, harassment between January 2021 and December last year, and an alleged breach of a non-molestation order. A previous court hearing was told the singer alleges Atieno controlled her finances and use of the shower while they were living together, allegedly intervened in her eating habits, and only allowed her to go to the gym 'at certain times'. It is said he 'did not allow her to watch TV and did not allow her to wear red lipstick' and also subjected her to verbal abuse, according to the charges. Atieno is also accused of grabbing Ms Buchanan around the neck, punching her on the arm and striking her on the back in a series of alleged assaults, the court heard. When blocked from contacting the singer by a family court order, it is alleged Atieno sent emails to her and he is also accused of harassment over the course of three years with texts, emails, social media contact and a request for £25,000. According to reports, Ms Buchanan was once engaged to Atieno and they had begun making plans for a wedding. Atieno was not asked to enter pleas to any of the charges at Thursday's hearing. He told the magistrates court hearing he denies all the allegations. Atieno, of Langton Road, Kennington, southwest London, is set to return to court to enter pleas in August.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sugababes' Keisha Buchanan's ex set for trial next year on harassment and controlling behaviour charges
Sugababe Keisha Buchanan's footballer ex-partner is set to stand trial next Spring over claims he harassed the singer and controlled parts of her life. Taiwo Leo Atieno, 39, is accused of blocking the singer from wearing red lipstick, watching TV and going to the gym, and allegedly controlled what she ate when they were in a relationship. After the breakdown of the romance, it is said he harassed her with texts, emails and social media contact, as well as an alleged request for £25,000. He is also accused - in criminal charges spanning a decade - of attacking Ms Buchanan. Atieno appeared on Thursday at Harrow Crown Court for a preliminary hearing, when Judge Charles Bourne KC set the case down for a five-day trial starting on April 13 next year. The defendant appeared for the hearing on a videolink from HMP Wormwood Scrubs, having been held in custody since first being charged last month. The judge agreed on Thursday that he could be released from prison to await his trial, as long as he abides by bail conditions including the surrender of his passport. Ms Buchanan, 40, was one of the original members of Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhan Donaghy, and was part of the band as they became one of the 21st Century's most successful pop acts. She enjoyed chart-topping hits such as Round Round and Push the Button, before ultimately being forced out of the band in 2009. Ms Buchanan had solo success before reuniting with her former bandmates under the title Mutya Keisha Siobhan – and together they seized back control of the Sugababes name in 2019. Atieno was a professional footballer who made appearances for Kenya in qualifiers for the World Cup and African Cup of Nations. The Brixton-born forward made appearances for Walsall, Tamworth, Luton Town, Stevenage and Torquay United before retiring in 2013, and he also had spells playing in Puerto Rico and Rochester in New York state. He is charged with controlling and coercive behaviour towards Ms Buchanan between December 2015 and May 2018, assault occasioning actual bodily harm between January 2012 and January 2015, harassment between January 2021 and December last year, and an alleged breach of a non-molestation order. A previous court hearing was told the singer alleges Atieno controlled her finances and use of the shower while they were living together, allegedly intervened in her eating habits, and only allowed her to go to the gym 'at certain times'. It is said he 'did not allow her to watch TV and did not allow her to wear red lipstick' and also subjected her to verbal abuse, according to the charges. Atieno is also accused of grabbing Ms Buchanan around the neck, punching her on the arm and striking her on the back in a series of alleged assaults, the court heard. When blocked from contacting the singer by a family court order, it is alleged Atieno sent emails to her and he is also accused of harassment over the course of three years with texts, emails, social media contact and a request for £25,000. According to reports, Ms Buchanan was once engaged to Atieno and they had begun making plans for a wedding. Atieno was not asked to enter pleas to any of the charges at Thursday's hearing. He told the magistrates court hearing he denies all the allegations. Atieno, of Langton Road, Kennington, southwest London, is set to return to court to enter pleas in August.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Sugababes star's footballer ex in court after allegedly beating singer
Sugababes star Keisha Buchanan's footballer ex-boyfriend appeared in court today after he allegedly assaulted the singer on three occasions. He is also accused of coercive and controlling behaviour over an alleged ten-year campaign of harassment. Taiwo Leo Atieno, 39, has been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm between January 2012 and January 2015, controlling and coercive behaviour between December 2015 and May 2018, harassment between January 2021 and December last year, and an an alleged breach of a non-molestation order. The Brixton-born professional footballer, who has made appearances for Kenya in the qualifiers for the World Cup and African Club of Nations, appeared via video link this morning from HMP Wormwood Scrubs wearing a suit and tie. He was not asked to enter pleas and Judge Ian Bourne KC granted his release from prison on conditional bail during the Harrow Crown Court case sitting at Southwark on Thursday. Singer Buchanan, 40, dated the former Luton Town player between 2015 and 2018 and went to the police about his alleged "course of conduct over a ten-year period" in December 2024. His bail conditions include that he must surrender his passport by Monday afternoon. The judge said: "There must not be any contact either directly or indirectly with the complainant Keisha Buchanan. That means any form of contact, whether it be by email or other sort of social media messaging system - any contact at all". Julian Malins KC, defending, said his client "fully understands it, and assures the court through us that he will abide by that". Atieno was also told not to apply for international travel or to enter the London Borough of Barnet. He is due to enter pleas on August 22 this year and his trial is set for April 13 2026. A court heard last month that Atieno is said to have assaulted Buchanan on three occasions, one so severely that it left her requiring physiotherapy treatment. One incident saw Buchanan suffer a sharp pain to her lower back – which she described as feeling as though she had been kicked. The footballer is also accused of controlling her letters, her finances, what the singer ate and how she presented herself to people outside of the home. He also stands accused of harassing her after she called off their relationship and breached a court order which was put in place to prevent him from contacting her. During a hearing at Willesden Magistrates' Court in May, Prosecutor Edward Kalber said: "The offending is severe in its nature and has caused problems for the defendant, both psychological and physical." He added: "The complainant states that while she lived with the defendant, she wasn't allowed to open her own letters or sort out her finances. "The complainant would have to ask for money whenever she wanted it." It was later heard that Atieno would get frustrated if Buchanan wore certain things. Kalber continued: "The defendant would get annoyed if the complainant wore red lipstick. He berated her and called her trashy, and told her she looked like a prostitute whenever she wore this. "This then fed into her dietary issues, due to the defendant controlling what she was allowed to eat." The footballer is also accused of not allowing Keisha to watch TV. Two alleged assaults on Buchanan took place in the defendant's bedroom, with another taking place in the front room of the property. He allegedly grabbed her around the neck, punched her on the arm and then struck her back. One alleged attack left her experiencing a sharp pain which felt like a kick to her lower back, and she later required physiotherapy due to the alleged incident. Buchanan also claims that Atieno controlled her use of the shower while the pair were living together and she was only allowed to go to the gym at "certain times". Despite Buchanan blocking Atieno after they split, it's claimed he later sent her emails and is accused of harassment over the course of three years. He also allegedly demanded £25,000 from the musician. The footballer of Kennington, southwest London, has been remanded in custody and previously indicated not guilty pleas to all four charges made against him.
