The BBC knew about the police investigation into Scott Mills but fired the radio star after “new information” emerged, according to reports.
The ex-Radio 2 presenter’s abrupt dismissal was reportedly connected to a previous police investigation into allegations of serious sexual offences against a teenage boy under 16.
Mills, 53, was quizzed by police in 2018 - when he was working at Radio 1 - and a full file was submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, which concluded there was insufficient evidence to bring charges.
The breakfast show host was abruptly taken off air by the BBC last week before his sacking over allegations related to his “personal conduct” was announced on Monday.
The Mirror is now reporting that the BBC decided to sack Mills after receiving compelling new information. It claimed the new information involved the same person at the centre of the allegations that sparked the police investigation, although it is different to those claims.
The BBC assessed the new details over the last few days “and decided he had to go”, The Mirror reports.
Mills has been contacted for comment.
The BBC reportedly “knew” that the DJ - who was earning up to £360,000 in his Radio 2 job - has been questioned under caution in 2018, but decided not to take him off air.
A source told The Sun: “The BBC knew Scott had been questioned by police, he told them.
“Scott said he denied the allegations that had been made against him.
“Given how serious the complaint was, it raises questions about why the BBC decided to keep him on air on Radio 1 — whose target audience is teenagers — rather than removing him while the police continued the investigation.”
Meanwhile, The Telegraph reported that the BBC had previously been told about allegations regarding Mills almost a year ago but had failed to investigate them.
The newspaper claimed a freelance reporter had contacted the corporation in May of 2025 regarding alleged “inappropriate communications”.
In a statement the BBC said: “We received a press query in 2025 which included limited information. This should have been followed up and we should have asked further questions. We apologise for this and will look into why this did not happen. More broadly, we would always urge anyone who has concerns or information to raise it with us.”
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch told the Press Association on a visit to Hertfordshire: “This is yet another scandal that the BBC has to contend with.
“It is a large and complex organisation, and I think that this is one of the things that the new director-general is going to need to get to grips with.”
