Louis Walsh Fights Sex Attack Claim

Pop impresario and TV star Louis Walsh has vowed to clear his name, after allegations of sexual assault were made against him by a 24-year-old single dad.

The young man claims that he was groped by Walsh in the toilets of the exclusive Krystle nightclub in Dublin last April after a Westlife gig.

Walsh has become a household name in the UK and Ireland after being selected to be a judge on the hit TV show X Factor by Simon Cowell in 2004.

The hit show is watched by millions and Walsh is the only judge from the original line-up that remains on the show.

Walsh had previously managed successful pop acts including Westlife and Boyzone, and a host of other less successful Irish artists over the past three decades.

He vehemently denies the allegation, and flew home to Dublin last Friday to co-operate with a Garda investigation into the matter.

Gardai questioned him but Mr Walsh was not arrested.

Officers are also examining CCTV footage from the nightclub venue from the night in question.

A file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions, who will decide whether or not there is a genuine case to be heard.

Walsh has thanked the public for the "overwhelming number of messages of support from around the world" that he received since the allegations were made public.

"It didn't happen so therefore there is no case to answer and I am extremely angry that someone is trying to tarnish my name and reputation," he said in a statement.

"My phone has not stopped ringing with messages of support from around the world which means so much to me. I am hoping that this matter will be resolved as quickly as possible".

Walsh has hired a team of top lawyers to fight the claims.

"Louis is fully confident that this purported allegation will be resolved quickly and has taken full legal advice to vindicate his name and reputation following the outrageous publication of what are totally false inferences about him," a spokesman said.

Walsh also has the backing of his close friend, Simon Cowell who said he was "100% sure" that the allegations were without foundation.

"I don't believe for a second that these allegations are true," said Cowell.

Weekend newspaper reports suggest that the young man who made the claims is living on disability claims after spending almost one million dollars in six years.

They claim that the accuser received a windfall of over $1.1m when he turned 18, after being badly burned as a child and winning compensation.

A former girlfriend, with whom he had a child, claims that the young men spent the money on flash cars and designer clothes and was now living on welfare.

Westlife singer Shane Filan, who was with Walsh in the nightclub on the night in question, also backed the Mayo man, saying "He is innocent".