'I was sharing love and that was exposed maliciously': Man who 'nibbled' on boy's ear at World Snooker Championship breaks silence after being identified
The man who 'nibbled' on a boy's ear has broken his silence
BBC
A man who “nibbled” on a child’s ear live on television during the World Snooker Championship has broken his silence after being identified.
Stefano Voci, 43, was caught on camera biting the young boy’s ear as seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry was speaking during a break in coverage of the event at the Crucible in Sheffield.
The clip, which features the grown man whispering into a boy’s ear before proceeding to bite his lobe, went viral back in April.
Moments later, the seemingly unfazed child waved to a camera, after which the man pulled back and proceeded to grin.
The man who 'nibbled' on a boy's ear has broken his silence
BBCNow, the 43-year-old from Milan, has come forward to share his side of the story. He wrote on Facebook: “There are many clarifications to make but everything is in process (sic).
“I was just someone sharing love and affection like anyone else, that was exposed maliciously.”
He continued: “All the pictures are being edited in social networks, those pictures are not mine they are just setting this up to affect me… No more hate.
“My family are fine and closer than ever, I don't care that my face is all over social media with photomontages and fake posts.
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The man leaned into the young boy's neck and appeared to bite his earBBC“Just leave my family alone. God bless you all and best wishes to you all.”
The 43-year-old has since deleted all his social media accounts.
The video, which amassed over 12 million views within 24 hours, was flooded with comments from concerned fans expressing their horror.
The caption of the video read: “What the f*** did I just see?!” with a sick emoji.
One person wrote: “This is totally disgusting and he needs locking up for sure. He even nibbled the child's ear then realised he was on film and shook his head like that.”
Stephen Hendry will not enter qualifying this yearGETTY“This is very troubling”, another said, while a third added “I just threw up”.
Following the publication of the footage, South Yorkshire Police confirmed that they were “reviewing” the clip.
“Yesterday, Thursday 25 April at 9.20pm, we received a call to inform us of a video circulating on social media of a man and a boy at the Crucible in Sheffield,” they said after the incident.
“We are aware of the footage and officers will be reviewing the content.”
However, almost two months later, police have finally given a fresh update on the case.
Posting on social media, the force said: “Following review of the video, officers have determined no crime has been committed and the investigation has been filed.”