A YOUNG woman who appeared on an episode of Rich Kids Go Skint last year has revealed she was targeted by vile trolls who even told her it was her “own fault” she was sexually assaulted.
Jodie Weston, 26, has spoken out about the horrendous abuse she received online after she appeared on the show, in which pampered rich kids swap their lavish lifestyles for living on the breadline.
Jodie came under fire from trolls after she said the single mum on benefits – who she was sent to live with for a week – had a series of “bad decisions” to blame for her cash-strapped circumstances.
But the online abuse became so severe, one told her it was “her own fault” she was sexually assaulted earlier this year.
“Someone DM’d me via a fake account and said that it’s my own fault I got attacked because I always have my body on show, so what did I expect?” Jodie told the Mail Online.
“This was the most disgusting and vile things I’ve ever received from anyone because it’s one thing insulting someone from a TV show, but when they’ve seen an article about me being sexually assaulted by a random person who was following me down a dark alley, then that is another level of disgraceful.”
Jodie was on her way to a nightclub in Ilford, East London, in February this year when she was approached by a man from behind, revealing she “was so close to being raped or murdered”.
Jodie told the Sun Online: “As a woman you always walk quicker when walking through badly-lit areas.
“I clocked this guy about 8-10 metres behind me over my left shoulder and started walking faster. He must be quite psychically fit as he caught up with me in a couple of seconds.”
She then describes how the man, dressed in all black tracksuit and hoodie, stepped in front of her, blocking her way and asked where she was going in a “soft voice”.
Jodie added: “A sense of fear came over me.
“He reached down and grabbed my bum really hard, like it actually really hurt. Then my hip, thigh and all of my left side.
“It felt like a power play, like he was saying ‘I’m in control’.
“He started reaching around in the pocket of his black hoodie.
“I didn’t know what he was reaching for but I could tell he was loving it, seeing my panic.
“Time went so slowly and I had a million thoughts running through my head.
“I just thought, this guy is a total creep, he’s either going to rob me or rape me. I was frozen with fear.”
The creep then grabbed Jodie’s face and bit her, causing her to scream out “as loud as she could”.
She explained it must have “spooked him” as he quickly sprinted away.
“I was holding my phone in my hand if he had wanted to rob me he could have,” she added.
“That’s the scariest part. I’m a million per cent sure he wanted to rape me.”
After appearing on the 5STAR show, Jodie, whose most expensive piece of jewellery is a £15k diamond necklace, explained she was targeted for months, receiving an endless stream of nasty comments.
She was called a “bully”, trolled for her accent and targeted by users who made nasty remarks about her hair, make-up and personality.
Jodie says while one said they hoped she’d “get punched in the face” others called her “spoilt” and “talentless”.
Now, Jodie – who insists she isn’t “spoilt” and helps run the family salon, Muse of London – says she can understand why social media can have such a negative impact on mental health.
“I don’t think a lot of people would have been able to cope with the amount of hate that was thrown at me during that time period I was trolled relentlessly every day for six months after Rich Kids Go Skint,” she said.
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