Former Culture Club singer Boy George has been found guilty of falsely imprisoning a male escort at his London apartment. 

The 47-year-old “Karma Chameleon” singer, who found fame working as a DJ following his band’s demise in 1986, is now facing a jail sentence. George O’Dowd (his real name) was found guilty of handcuffing Norwegian male ‘escort’ Audun Carlsen to a wall during a naked photo shoot, with Carlsen also claiming the singer had beaten him with a chain when he tried to escape – allegations that Boy George vehemently denies.

“The fact that your bail is being continued does not imply that this will be dealt with by a non-custodial sentence,” explained Judge David Radford to the star, who was appearing in London’s Snaresbrook Crown Court and will be sentenced next month. “I don’t want any false expectations created.”

Boy George did not give evidence during the trial, Carlsen insisting their encounter turned violent when he refused to have sex with the singer. “When he wanted sex, I said, ‘That’s not what I am here for’. He’s not a person I would find attractive to have sex with,” he argued. “He was quite upset that I did not want to have sex with him. I think that was the trigger – why he was so upset.”