EMMERDALE has been slammed for casting an actor convicted of supplying date rape drug GHB in a major new role as Victoria Sugden’s rapist.
Viewers watched in horror on Thursday as chef Victoria was apparently spiked and it later emerged she had been brutally raped by a man she met in the club.
But the soap has sparked fury with their choice of actor to play the rapist – former Brookside star Kris Mochrie – because he has been convicted of supplying date rape drug GHB and was sentenced to prison for two years.
An outraged fan told The Sun Online: “It’s disgusting. That drug destroys lives. It’s a slap in the face to anyone who has been spiked and worse.”
The disgraced actor was accused of spiking a friend with GHB – a class C drug – causing him to collapse in a nightclub, before accusing two innocent female students of spiking the drink.
A few hours later another woman died in the club and a major police investigation was launched with fears a drink spiker was at large, partly because of Mochrie’s lies. The woman’s death was later discovered to be by natural causes.
He eventually admitting lying and pleaded guilty to supplying GHB and perverting the course of justice at Hull Crown Court.
Sentencing, Judge Jeremy Richardson QC told the actor that his actions were “deliberate and selfish and intended to divert police from your own criminal conduct”.
He said: “At the same time a young girl tragically became ill and subsequently died. She had absolutely nothing to do with drugs.
“But there was a police investigation in due course and you effectively pointed the finger of responsibility for drug pedalling at two young girls.
Channel 4
“They were wholly innocent and for three weeks they were under suspicion in respect of a matter where a young girl’s life had been lost.
“It was entirely deliberate, it was selfish, you intended to divert the police from your own criminal conduct and the consequences were extremely serious for these two women.”
A police sergeant also blasted the actor’s behaviour at the time saying he “didn’t have the integrity or decency to be honest”,
He added: “Mochrie in particular caused us extensive police work and took us down paths that caused two innocent people to be arrested.”
The soap has been mired in scandals recently with actress Shila Iqbal being fired over racist and homophobic tweets, and actor Danny Miller insulting fans and the British Soap Awards in a foul-mouthed social media rant.
An Emmerdale spokeswoman declined to comment.
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