TOWIE star's partner accused of being cocaine kingpin 'wasn't a particular fan of the reality TV show'
- Daniel Harris accused of being ringleader in multi-million pound drugs operation
- Harris met TOWIE's Cara Kilbey in Spain and she fell pregnant a few months later
- He is said to have used his lover's white Porsche to meet his criminal associates
- It is alleged that some gang members posed as trainee cabbies whilst in London
- Court heard that they had sold 45 kilos of cocaine, worth more than £1.4million
The partner of TOWIE star Cara Kilbey has told his drugs trial that he wasn't a 'particular fan' of the reality TV show.
Daniel Harris also explained how they had a baby girl, Penelope Blu, two weeks before his arrest last March.
The 33-year-old is accused of being a ringleader in a multi-million pound drugs operation which dealt cocaine between 2012 and 2016.
Some of the gang members posed as trainee cabbies learning the 'knowledge' test on mocked up mopeds while selling drugs across London, the Old Bailey heard.
Cara Kilbey posted a Valentine's Day message of support to her partner Daniel Harris as his trial gets underway at the Old Bailey
Daniel Harris (left, with Cara), 33, is accused of being a ringleader in a multi-million pound operation which dealt cocaine and heroin between 2012 and 2016
Harris is said to have used his lover's white Porsche to meet his criminal associates to organise drug deals.
Giving evidence today, former banker Harris said he met Ms Kilbey while he lived in Spain in July 2014.
He returned to the UK two months later and moved in with her after she fell pregnant and so they could 'settle down', the court heard.
Once back in the UK, he said he planned to open a CrossFit gym, and received £50,000 from Cara's father, Gary Kilbey, to help him in late 2014.
Asked if she was still his partner, Harris said: 'Luckily, yes.'
David Whittaker, defending, said: 'Your partner is Cara Kilbey and you have a child together. She was born before your arrest?'
The prosecutor told jurors that Ms Kilbey was Harris's girlfriend and that they lived together
Harris replied: 'Two weeks before my arrest. She is a year on Sunday.'
The couple lived at her flat in Theydon Bois, Essex, which her father Gary Kilbey had bought her outright in 2013, jurors were told.
Mr Whittaker continued: 'You returned from Spain in September of 2014. You started living with her, and lived with her thereafter. She fell pregnant at around that sort of time?'
Harris said: 'That's correct.'
Asked why he returned to the UK, Harris sad: 'I had met Cara Kilbey in the summer and by late September she was pregnant, so we wanted to settle down.
'And I moved back to be with her, and pursue CrossFit. But ultimately to settle down because she was pregnant.'
Asked if they met in Spain, he said: 'Yes, she was there on holiday I believe.'
Mr Whittaker said: 'Help us with Cara Kilbey. She is obviously the daughter of Gary Kilbey.
Some of the gang members posed as trainee cabbies learning the 'knowledge' test on mocked up mopeds while selling drugs across London, it is alleged (Daniel and Cara pictured together)
'Cara herself - had she been in television? A few years ago, was she a TV celebrity?'
Harris replied: 'She was one of the original members of The Only Way Is Essex - TOWIE.'
Questioned how long she had been there, Harris said: 'Four seasons. I mean, I wasn't a particular fan of the show, but she was on it for a while. She finished late in maybe 2008, 2009.'
Mr Whittaker said: 'When she finished at TOWIE, did she have some sort of following?'
Harris replied: 'Yes, she has got a massive social media following and quite a high profile in the press.
'She would be paid for tweeting, she had half a million followers, similar on Instagram.
'And she would be paid to tweet, something in the region of £3,000 to 4,000.
The court has heard members used encrypted Blackberry phones to avoid detection (Harris and Cara together)
'A brand contracted her. For example, Protein World. And she would be paid accordingly.'
Mr Whittaker said: 'When you met her in the summer of 2014, was she working?'
Harris replied: 'Yes - again, Instagram, Twitter, putting pictures up. She is a VIP.'
She was also in Spain to take part in spread betting training camps her father had set up for her, he told the court.
Harris continued: 'I think the first time I met him was to tell him his daughter was pregnant. Understandably he was apprehensive.
'He is very active in spread betting, financial markets. He is very highly involved in shares, so he has his own accounts as well.
'We shared a common ground on that because I had worked in the City for so long, so we bonded over that.'
He said he got on 'very well' with her father, and saw him nearly every day. Cara eventually lost the baby in March 2015, but later fell pregnant again, the court heard.
Harris explained how he grew up in Liverpool, and after graduating from Lancaster University with a 2.1 degree in business studies and economics moved to London in 2005 to pursue a career in the City.
Pictured is Towie star Cara Kilbey (right) leaving Wandsworth Prison after visiting her partner
Initially he worked for Standard Bank, before moving to the ECM Asset Management hedge fund in Mayfair in 2006, where he became a junior portfolio analyst.
The court heard by 2010 he was earning about £43,000, before moving to the Royal Bank of Scotland by 2011 where he worked until 2013.
Harris said: 'By the time I had moved to RBS, I wasn't cut out for front office work, just wasn't good enough ultimately.
'At that point it wasn't a fulfilling job. I had been working in the City for about eight years.'
Harris left his flat in Hackney, east London, and eventually moved to Spain in early 2014 to live with his ex-pat father, jurors were told.
Describing his time out there, he said: 'I was exploring the idea of CrossFit, and visiting a CrossFit Marbella.
'I was living fairly frugally because obviously my rent was covered by my father and I had borrowed money off my mum and my sister.'
Harris said his finances were 'dire' by the time he returned to the UK from Spain in 2014.
Mr Whittaker said: 'Did you discuss your finances with her father, Gary Kilbey?'
The defendant replied: 'Yes, in depth.'
Mr Whittaker continued: 'Did you inform Gary Kilbey, or did he ask what your intention was moving forward?'
Harris said: 'Yes, I wanted to open a CrossFit franchise.'
He had no money to open one, but Mr Kilbey was prepared to help him, jurors were told.
Mr Whittaker said: 'What did the £50,000 represent to your mind?'
Harris responded: 'It was enabling me to open up and explore a franchise.'
Harris, of Theydon Bois, Essex, denies conspiracy to supply cocaine, conspiracy to supply heroin, and possessing criminal property.
The trial continues.
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