Ex-Love Island host Caroline Flack has pleaded not guilty to assaulting her boyfriend with a lamp. On 12 December, police were called to Flack's home where they found her boyfriend, tennis player Lewis Burton, covered in blood from an alleged attack. Flack was arrested and charged with assault by beating.
The alleged altercation took place after Flack found texts on her boyfriend's phone that led her to believe he was cheating, according to prosecutor Katie Weiss. "He said he had been asleep and was hit over the head by Caroline with a lamp, causing a visible cut to his head," Weiss said, per the BBC. "She had also smashed a glass and she had sustained an injury." Weiss claimed that Burton was "almost begging the operator to send help" and the police "likened the scene to a horror movie."
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Burton refuted this story via his lawyer, who stated, "He is not the victim, as he would say, he was a witness." Flack was released on bail on the condition that she does not contact Burton, but the tennis player is looking to have those terms lifted since they "remain a couple" and would like to spend Christmas together.
Days after her arrest, Flack stepped down as host of Love Island stating "in order to not detract attention from the upcoming series I feel the best thing I can do is stand down for Series 6." She has since been replaced by Laura Whitmore, a former MTV Ireland host who has become a staple on BBC's Radio 5 Live broadcast. It's a choice Flack wholeheartedly approves of. "I'm glad it's Laura," Flack said on her Instagram story. "She loves the show as much as I do."
Flack will return to court on 4 March to stand trial.
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