Key Witness

David Martin was just 9 years old when his home became a place of fear. Concerns about his safety had already reached social services, and warning signs were building around the person who was supposed to protect him most. Then, on November 4, 2010, everything changed. On the very day a court was due to decide David’s future, something terrifying happened behind closed doors. David was left fighting for his life, and when his school made an unexpected phone call, it triggered a discovery no one was prepared for. David survived emergency surgery and spent 42 days in hospital. But surviving was only the beginning. His mother was detained in a psychiatric facility and David was placed with a foster family, leaving him to rebuild a childhood that had been torn apart. Years later, his mother came back into his life. David hoped confronting the past might finally bring answers. Instead, he was left with questions he still couldn’t resolve, eventually making the decision to cut contact. Then came another disturbing revelation: a later review raised questions about whether warning signs before the incident had been missed. Could what happened to David have been prevented? And how do you rebuild your life when the person you should have been safest with becomes the person you fear most? This is David’s story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sophie thought her home was the one place she was safe. Then a message from a stranger changed everything. It began with anonymous Facebook messages and a disturbing claim about someone she knew. Then came the images taken inside her own home. As Sophie searched for answers, she uncovered a secret that had been hiding in plain sight. Screenshots, messages, photographs and videos began to expose a double life involving someone within her own family. But that was only the beginning. Sophie discovered that intimate images of her had been created using deepfake technology and shared online without her knowledge. For years, strangers had been viewing and discussing fabricated sexual images of her while Sophie had no idea they even existed. Her privacy had been invaded, her identity violated and the place where she had once felt safest no longer felt safe. As the truth emerged, Sophie struggled to understand how someone she trusted could have hidden this behaviour for so long. Anxiety, sleepless nights and panic attacks became part of her life. But Sophie refused to stay silent. Sophie begins another fight, pushing for stronger protections against deepfake and image-based abuse and ensuring that other survivors are heard. What began with one message from a stranger would expose a devastating betrayal and change Sophie’s life forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amani was just a child when one day changed everything. Growing up in Sudan, she was subjected to female genital mutilation (FGM) before she was old enough to understand what was happening to her. For years, Amani lived with the consequences in silence. She didn’t understand why her body was different. Why she struggled to urinate. Why intimacy was painful. Or why something she had been told was normal had left her carrying so much anger and shame. Then, one day, a biology lesson revealed a truth she had never known. As Amani grew older, she began to understand what had happened to her and the lasting impact it had on her body, relationships and sense of self. Becoming a mother gave her the motivation to confront her past and take back control of her body. Then came a decision that would change everything. A life-changing procedure. A new beginning. And the moment Amani began to reclaim her confidence, freedom and power. Now, Amani is a student nurse and mother, sharing her story to raise awareness of FGM, challenge the stigma surrounding it and help other survivors feel less alone. Note: This episode contains candid discussions of childhood abuse, trauma, mental health struggles. Viewer discretion is advised. Some archive material used in this episode is included under fair dealing for the purposes of criticism/review and / or quotations (Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) Female genital mutilation (FGM) - NHS Savera uk  https://www.saverauk.co.uk   The dahlia project   https://manorgardenscentre.org NSPCC  0800 028 3550  Anonymous Direct number for anyone worried about a girls risk of FGM.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chloe spent years trying to escape her past. Growing up in Ayrshire, Chloe Craig and her older sister Jamieleigh were inseparable despite being complete opposites. But behind the laughter was a fractured family, a troubled father and secrets that would eventually tear their lives apart. When Chloe was just three years old, their parents separated and the sisters moved with their mum, leaving their father behind. As the years passed, Chloe’s relationship with her father faded, but Jamieleigh never gave up hope of rebuilding the bond they had lost. So when she finally tracked him down, after years of searching, she believed she was finally getting the relationship she had always dreamed of. But what began as a long-awaited reunion would take a devastating turn. What followed would change Chloe’s life forever. A devastating confession. A death that no family could have prepared for. A mother who would never recover from losing her daughter. And years later, another tragedy that left Chloe completely alone. But somehow, from the darkest chapter of her life, Chloe found a reason to keep going. Today, she is a mother herself, carrying the memory of her sister and mum with her as she campaigns for tougher sentences for those convicted of sexual abuse. A story about family, betrayal, grief… and finding a reason to live when you feel you have nothing left. Note: This episode contains candid discussions of childhood sexual abuse, trauma, mental health struggles, and bereavement. Viewer discretion is advised. Some archive material used in this episode is included under fair dealing for the purposes of criticism/review and / or quotations (Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What began as an innocent friendship would become a secret Helena carried for years. Helena Brady was just 13 when she first met ambulance driver John Corteggio. Growing up in Worthing, Sussex, Helena first came to know Corteggio through a mutual friend, Gareth. At just 13, she saw him as charming and handsome, never imagining that their friendship would eventually take a much darker turn. Too ashamed to speak about what she had endured, she kept it hidden. But the silence came at a cost. For years, Helena tried to move forward. But everything changed when one article landed in her hands. All the trauma she thought she had put behind her came rushing back along with questions she had never been able to answer. Why had Corteggio been able to enter her life so easily? How much had she buried over the years? And what would it mean to finally confront the truth? In this powerful episode of The Moment, Helena tells the story of a childhood secret that shaped the years that followed, the strength it took to rebuild her life, and the unexpected discovery that reopened a chapter she thought she had finally closed. Note: This episode contains candid discussions of childhood sexual abuse, trauma, mental health struggles, and the lasting impact of abuse. Viewer discretion is advised. Some archive material used in this episode is included under fair dealing for the purposes of criticism/review and / or quotations (Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) All sources are credited below: -Sussex Police Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices