Alex Reid: who is the ex-partner of Katie Price, why has he been jailed - and what is contempt of court?

Former cage fighter, Alex Reid, has been given jail time after he lied in a witness statement for a compensation claim - known as committing contempt of court.

The High Court heard that the 45-year-old made a county court claim for about £20,000 in compensation after an Audi driven by him was involved in a collision with another driver in January 2018.

As part of that claim, Reid said in a sworn statement that he did not know a motorbike rider called Darren Summers, who claimed he had witnessed the crash.

However, the other motorist’s insurers, Axa Insurance UK, discovered an article on a local news website about an appearance Reid had made at a mixed martial arts (MMA) masterclass in Ipswich in September 2017.

The article stated that Mr Summers, a former European and world kickboxing champion, had organised the event for charity.

Reid admitted contempt of court when Axa initiated High Court committal proceedings against him in January this year.

Who is Alex Reid?

Alex Reid is a former mixed martial arts (MMA) cage fighter and won the seventh series of Celebrity Big Brother.

But he might be better known for marrying Katie Price.

The couple previously got married in Las Vegas, back in 2010 and divorced the following year.

Together they made a reality show called Katie & Alex: For Better for Worse.

Now, he is expecting a daughter with his fiancée Nikki Manashe who is six months pregnant.

Their “miracle” IVF news came seven years after trying for a baby together.

But there is a chance that Reid might miss the birth of his baby after he was sent to prison on Wednesday (April 21).

How long has Reid been sentenced to?

Sentencing him to eight weeks in prison, Mrs Justice Eady said she took into account the defence put forward on his behalf, including that his fiancee is six months’ pregnant and he has recently been diagnosed with autism.

However, the judge said that only a custodial term would reflect the serious nature of his dishonesty.

She said he will serve half of his sentence in prison and the remaining half on licence following his release.

At the committal hearing on Wednesday, the judge said she agreed with Axa’s description of his actions as a “plain, deliberate and dishonest attempt to interfere with the administration of justice in a material way”.

The court heard the collision happened on January 29 2018 and that Reid and the other driver blamed each other for it.

When Axa raised the allegation of dishonesty as part of the defence to Reid’s county court claim, Reid discontinued the proceedings.

Tim Sharpe, representing Axa, said the news article about the MMA masterclass made it clear Reid knew Mr Summers and that they were “more than passing acquaintances”.

He said that, in his witness statement however, Reid falsely represented that Mr Summers was an independent witness to the collision, adding that this was “no mere slip”.

The barrister said the aim of the lie was to “set Mr Summers up, in the eyes of the insurance company and the court, as someone upon whose evidence they could rely as being unconnected to the parties, offering an independent account as to the circumstances of the collision”.

He told the court: “The false statement was designed to bolster (Reid’s) chances of proving his claim on liability… and thereby of recovering some or all of his claim for damages.”

Mr Sharpe also said such fraudulent claims have an impact on honest people, as they result in higher insurance premiums and delays in investigating genuine claims.

He drew the judge’s attention to evidence from the Association of British Insurers which suggested that in 2018 there were 55,000 dishonest motor insurance claims detected, worth £629 million in total.

The court heard that, in light of Reid’s admission of contempt, Axa considered it was no longer in the public interest to bring similar proceedings against Mr Summers and withdrew the case.

Gary Pons, representing Reid, highlighted the impact a term of imprisonment would have on members of his family who rely on him for support, including his fiancee Nicola Manashe who is six months pregnant with his child.

He told the judge that a number of people who had written letters in support of Reid’s “positive good character” described his charitable works and that one referred to him as a “kind, caring and loving man”.

The barrister also drew the judge’s attention to the arduous conditions in prisons as a result of Covid-19 restrictions, which mean inmates are not allowed visits and are kept in their cells for 23 hours a day.

He argued that any custodial sentence should be suspended, given the impact of all these factors.

However, the judge said she had taken into account all that was said in mitigation on Reid’s behalf, but that it was in the interests of justice to impose an immediate sentence.

Reid was taken to the cells by the court’s tipstaff at the end of the hearing.

What is contempt of court?

‘Contempt of court’ happens when someone prejudices a case, which can affect a trial’s outcome.

This means they risk unfairly influencing a court case, which may stop somebody from getting a fair trial.

Contempt of court can also include ignoring a court order, taking photos or shouting in court, refusing to be called as a witness and publicly commenting on a court case on social media or online news stories.