Gary Glitter fathered love children during his time overseas - with one daughter apparently abandoned to a grim fate.
The disgraced popstar's first conviction came in 1999, when he served a four-month sentence for downloading 4,000 items of child abuse. The shocking images - discovered after Glitter, now 79, took his laptop to PC World for repairs - showed kids believed to be as young as two years old.
Following his release from prison in January , convicted paedophile Glitter - real name Paul Gadd - fled the UK with his reputation in tatters. After spending some time in Spain, he headed over to Sagua La Grande in Cuba, an exploitation hotspot known for sinister bars where children could be abused for as little as £60.
It was during his time in Sagua La Grande that Glitter met farm girl Yudania Sosa Martinez, then 21, and fathered a son who continues to idolise him. Ahead of new ITV documentary Glitter: The Popstar Paedophile, the Mirror takes a look at Glitter's tormented love children...
Son who longs for dad
Glitter continued to provide for young Gary and his mother after fleeing Cuba (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)
Gary hopes to become a singer - just like his dad (Jeff Rayner/Coleman-Rayner)In an exclusive interview with the Mirror in 2019, Gary Pantoja Sosa, then 18, spoke out about his famous father, who fled Cuba before his birth in February 2001 following Fidel Castro's crackdown on sex tourism. Although Gary Jr. has never met his notorious dad in person, they have spoken over the phone.
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Amateur tattoo artist Gary, who was at that point unemployed, said "I'm in communication with my father but it's a difficult subject for me and I'm not allowed to talk about it. Everything is going well with my life but I'm not working or studying at the moment."
Glitter has also reportedly made sure Yudania and Gary are cared for financially. The shamed Leader of the Gang singer gifted Yudania £20,000 – an enormous amount of money in communist Cuba - for an apartment in a converted villa close to Havana's seafront boulevard. The well-kept property made for a stark contrast compared with its surroundings, where locals struggle to get by despite the relatively privileged location.
With his fashionable clothes, Gary also stood out from other youngsters in the area, clad in Adidas trainers and a cap from skater brand Supreme, despite being unemployed. Meanwhile, Yudania, also jobless at that time, would wear gold jewellery when out and about gossiping with neighbours, who said Glitter would continue to send cash from his royalties.
Close family friend Felipe Peraza Cabrera said: "Glitter still helps the family out from England. Yudania and Gary do not work but they still get money from Glitter. Glitter bought Yudania a really expensive fridge a while back, maybe five years ago.
"The young Gary does tattoos, people go to the apartment to get tattooed and he makes a bit of money with that. Yudania has still got Glitter stuck in her heart. She is currently trying to sell the flat he bought her and move away from Cuba. She would like to move to Britain to be nearer to Gary Glitter but that really depends on him."
In 2023, Gary gave another interview with the Mail Online, in which he claimed he wanted to be a singer - just like his dad. Gary, who was by that point living in Gran Canaria, Spain, said: "My dream is that we will live in the same country. I don't know how we will make that happen, but we have talked about it, and it's possible I will live with my father.
"I know it is dangerous for him in Britain, as there is so much hatred towards him, so we will need to keep a low profile and stay somewhere out of the way. I feel in my heart we will see each other soon."
Gary also opened up about the financial support Glitter had provided for him and his mum throughout his childhood - which he says stopped after his bank accounts were frozen by the UK government. Forced to seek a regular income, Gary fled to Russia's capital Moscow in November 2021, before settling in Spain where a number of his mother's relatives live.
The aspiring musician continued: "I moved to Moscow as it is one of the only places that Cubans are allowed to visit and I worked as a tattoo artist there. I don't know if I will ever return to Cuba. I have decided that if I want to pursue my dreams, it has to be somewhere else.
"I want to be a singer one day and make my money from music just like my dad. I am not in a band right now, but I like to sing and write songs with my friends. I love rock music and my dad's old songs and I listen to them whenever I need inspiration. My favourite track of his is Rock and Roll.
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"I guess I have inherited some of his talent. I am also a big fan of pop music and Michael Jackson. My father is always encouraging me and saying that I should not let fear hold me back. He says I need to be confident and follow my dreams."
Daughter 'forced into child labour'
Glitter settled in Vietnam after being deported from Cambodia (Mirrorpix)
His teenage daughter was forced into child labour (PA)After leaving Cuba, Glitter headed to Cambodia where he was subsequently deported to Thailand in 2002, amid reports of sex crime allegations. He then made a home for himself in Vietnam, where he met Tran Thi Kim Oanh, who was then working in a bar. The Mail Online reports that Oanh, who was then 24, was involved with Glitter prior to his 2006 arrest in Vietnam for molesting girls aged ten and 11.
In the weeks before his arrest, Glitter reportedly cut contact with a then-heavily pregnant Oanh, after she asked him to cover her maternity bills. He apparently sent her home by bus with a clutch of banknotes worth £100 and failed to respond to letters asking him to take a DNA test and pay for his daughter to stay at school.
Oanh, who was in a relationship with a Vietnamese man while sleeping with Glitter, went on to welcome daughter Truc Ly. After taking one look at the newborn, her boyfriend reportedly said, "That's not my baby. She looks like a Westerner," before walking out of the hospital.
A bright girl, Truc Ly shone academically and teachers had high hopes that she would go on to receive a university education. Sadly, the teenager's dreams were crushed after she was apparently forced to drop out of school at the age of 12 as her family could no longer afford the fees.
At the age of 14, Truc Ly, who was 17 at the time of the interview, is said to have started work in an industrial poultry factory complex near the Cambodian border with her mother Oanh, using a forged ID card to get the job. Taking on all the overtime she can, desperate Truc Ly works gruelling 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, from 7am to 7pm.
Her work involves sticking labels on packets of processed chicken - some intended for stores in the UK. Truc Ly told the publication: "I miss my school and my friends but it's too late for me to go back to school even if I wanted to. I just want to look after my mum now."
When asked about whether she had any pastimes she enjoyed outside of her long working hours, Truc Ly replied: "I don't have time. I'm always working. I get up, I work, I eat, I shower, then go to bed at 9pm."
Although Oanh believes Glitter should step up and help their daughter, she doesn't believe he ever will. Glitter was put behind bars for 16 years in 2015 after being found guilty of sexually abusing three schoolgirls between 1975 and 1980. In February 2023, Glitter was automatically released halfway through his sentence, however, just six weeks after walking free, he was caged once more after breaching his licence conditions by allegedly viewing downloaded images of children.
You can catch Glitter: The Popstar Paedophile this evening (April 23) at 9pm on ITV1.
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