Back in 1998, Gino D’Acampo spent two years in prison after his DNA matched that on a cigarette butt

Gino D’Acampo has been accused multiple times of sexually inappropriate behaviour in a period spanning more than 12 years. Now, as viewers of the TV chef dig deeper into his past, many are remembering that he has been to prison before.

Back in 1998, D’Acampo actually spent two years in prison when he was caught breaking into singer Paul Young’s home.

Who is Paul Young?

Musician, singer and songwriter Paul Young was a member of Streetband and Q-Tips back in the 1970s, later becoming a solo artist. He’s best known for his tracks like Love of the Common People, Every Time You Go Away and Everything Must Change.

Paul Young performing in Germany in March 2024 ©Imago xxF.xZeisingx xFuturexImagex 80er_live_4345

Why did Gino D’Acampo go to prison?

Just 21 years old at the time and working as a waiter at The Orchard restaurant in London, D’Acampo stole multiple guitars worth £4,000 and a platinum record from Young. He was caught by police after they ran DNA on a cigarette butt that he had left in the star’s house in Mill Hill, London and sentenced to two years for burglary and handling stolen goods.

After keeping his criminal past a secret, the truth eventually came out in 2009 when D’Acampo – who has been married to wife Jessica Stellina Morrison since 2002 – called Young to apologise for his actions.

Speaking about that phone call in 2012, Young said, ‘I don’t hold it against him. He said it was bad and he apologised, and I did get most of the stuff back. Maybe he needed his wrist slapping and he got that. He said he was in a terrible place at that time and wanted to turn his life around.’

In the interview with the Evening Standard, Young – who was able to retrieve the majority of his stolen belongings – added, ‘I take it with a pinch of salt really. You’ve got to have a sense of humour. He wanted to meet to say his apologies. I thought that was nice, then he went into I’m A Celebrity and I thought, “Ah, now I know why.”

‘I decided to do the gentlemanly thing and not say anything. I just said, ‘I hope I get an invite to your new restaurant.’ I don’t know if he’s got a restaurant, but if he has and he’s not invited me then I’m p***ed off. He and I should do something stupid like collaborate on a show or book.’

For his part, D’Acampo has only briefly spoken about the experience saying in an interview with Birmingham Live in 2019, ‘It was a very crucial moment of my life. It was about embracing something negative and turning it into something positive. I was a very young boy… you make those mistakes. The secret is to learn and to move on.’