Stephen Bear cut a forlorn figure as he stepped out in east London just days after his release from HMP Brixton for revenge porn charges.
The convicted sex offender, 34, was released on Tuesday after serving half of his 21-month sentence for leaking a sex tape of his ex Georgia Harrison on OnlyFans.
Later in the week, Bear was seen enjoying his newfound freedom as he checked his bank balance, chatted on his mobile and headed for a coffee at a trendy Italian-Japanese deli which sells French Artisan goods
Clad in sportswear, he was worlds away from the swaggering star who taunted his ex during his court appearances in 2022. He was then jailed in March for voyeurism, disclosing sexual photographs and films and harassment without violence.
Bear hit headines during his trial in December 2022 when he arrived at court in a £475-a-day rented Rolls Royce, while sporting a slew of bold suits, which he asked his Twitter followers for advice in styling, and walked with a decorative cane.
Stephen Bear cut a forlorn figure as he stepped out in east London just days after his release from HMP Brixton for revenge porn charges
Clad in sportswear, he was worlds away from the swaggering star who taunted his ex during his court appearances in 2022
Later in the week, Bear was seen enjoying his newfound freedom as he checked his bank balance, chatted on his mobile and headed for a coffee at a trendy Italian-Japanese deli which sells French Artisan goods
Hs court appearances sparked outrage due to his arrogant exterior (pictured at his trial)
He kept warm in a winter coat while wearing head to toe sportswear
Stephen looked forlorn as he enjoyed his solo coffee
Bear, who won Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, was imprisoned after filming and uploading footage of him having sex with Georgia, who is currently filming Love Island All Stars in South Africa. in his garden on OnlyFans.
Earlier this week, Bear treated himself to a morning of shopping and grooming before attending an east London police station on his first day out of prison.
He was seen leaving the prison sporting a scruffy beard and long shaggy hair – a far cry from his usual groomed appearance.
Later, footage emerged of him tucking into Domino’s pizza as he enjoyed a belated birthday party with his family, having had a hair cut.
The party saw his sister declare he is ‘hiding under no rock’ as he ditched the long locks and rosary beads that had been so prominent as he left jail.
The following morning, Bear headed out for a coffee and a pastry, a personal grooming session where he had his eyebrows plucked and a visit to a local market, before attending Chingford police station.
He must wear an ankle tag for the remainder of his sentence and also has a restraining order that bans him from contacting Ms Harrison for five years.
A source had earlier told The Sun: ‘[Bear] has been telling pals he’s not the same man that went into prison,’ they said.
Bear (right) waves to the camera as his family celebrated his belated 34th birthday
He was seen leaving the prison sporting a scruffy beard and long shaggy hair – a far cry from his usual groomed appearance
Georgia (left) is seen arriving at court amid the shocking trial
‘There will be no hopping back on to social media or rolling straight back into the nearest nightclub when he gets out, he says he just wants to get back to east London and his family.’
The source said ‘time will tell’ if he has ‘changed’.
In October, Bear’s ex Ms Harrison appeared on stage at Labour’s conference in Liverpool to demand abuse cases are given priority in courts.
The former star of reality shows The Only Way Is Essex – who has waived her right to anonymity – spoke of her long wait for justice.
She said it took two years from the day she reported the crime for Bear to be convicted and warned about the impact of long legal processes on victims of other crimes, such as rape and domestic abuse.
The 28-year-old said she now has an ‘onslaught’ of women reaching out to her for help on social media following her high-profile case.
She also called for ‘massive online platforms’ to be required to take down sexually explicit content which had been posted without consent.
Speaking on a panel on the main stage of Labour’s conference, Ms Harrison said it was ‘really important that victims feel they are going to be taken seriously when they’re going to the police’.
‘I speak to a lot of girls who just feel like they weren’t taken seriously or no one really understood when they did go to the police,’ she added.
‘One thing I wanted to highlight from my personal experience is I feel there needs to be more support for victims when they do choose to call the police and go into the court system.
He kept things low-key as he stepped out in the wake of his release
He showed off his inked-up legs in shorts and socks paired with designer trainers
‘For me, from the day I reported the crime, it took me two whole years to get a conviction.’
Ms Harrison spoke of how the two-year legal ordeal she endured was ‘detrimental to my career and my mental health, which was really hard for me’.
She added: ‘But I couldn’t help but think, imagine if you were either a victim of domestic abuse or a sexual assault, if you had been raped.
‘And you get a phone call to say ‘actually you’re going to have to wait a whole other year to even get inside a court room’.
‘You’ve got to spend the next year of your life walking down the street not knowing if you’re going to get attacked, killed, violated – how would you live with that?
‘It would be so nice if the courts could make sure if it is a victim of sexual assault or domestic abuse – especially as in a domestic abusive relationship, that amount of time leaves the perpetrator so long to manipulate them to drop the charges – I think those sort of cases should be prioritised and 90 per cent of those victims are women.’
He headed to the cash point as he enjoys his release
