Stephen Port accused of poisoning men he met on gay dating websites charged with a string of other attacks
The former chef has been charged with a total of 29 offences including drugging and murdering four men
AN alleged serial killer who is accused of drugging and murdering four men he met on gay dating websites has been charged with attacking eight others.
Stephen Port is charged with poisoning four young men he met on Grindr before allegedly taking them back to his home in Barking, east London.
All four are believed to have died after ingesting lethal quantities of the party drug GHB.
The 41-year-old former bus garage chef, who once appeared alongside JLS singer JB Gill on an episode of Celebrity Masterchef, was originally charged with four counts of murder, four of manslaughter and four of administering a poison.
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But today at the Old Bailey, prosecutors added six more counts of administering a poison, seven charges of rape and four of sexual assault bringing the total number of charges to 29.
Port sat with his hands clasped between his legs while appearing in the dock at the Old Bailey by videolink to deny all charges.
He whispered "yes" when asked to confirm his name and then entering not guilty pleas to all charges.
Mr Justice Openshaw remanded him in custody to Belmarsh Prison until his trial on October 4.
The case is expected to last ten weeks.
Port allegedly killed Anthony Walgate, Gabriel Kovari, Daniel Whitworth, and Jack Taylor by giving them a lethal overdose of the party drug GHB between June 2014 and September 2015.
Police launched a murder probe after four bodies were found in the space of 14 months.
Who is Stephen Port accused of killing?
Fashion and design student Anthony Walgate, 23, was found dead on Cooke Street on June 19 2014.
The 23-year-old was studying at Middlesex University and living in Barnet, but was originally from Hull.
On August 28 2014, a dog walker found the body of Gabriel Kovari, 22, near St Margaret's churchyard.
He was originally from Slovakia but lived in Lewisham, south London.
Less than a month later the same dog walker discovered the body of 21-year-old Daniel Whitworth from Gravesend, Kent, near the churchyard.
The forth body was found on September 14 last year near the abbey ruins close to North Street.
Jack Taylor, 25, was a forklift truck driver from Dagenham.
Despite their similarities, the deaths were not linked until October 14 last year.
The Met Police referred the handling of the investigation to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
The 41-year-old from Barking is due to stand trial in October.
But in January a judge at Kingston Crown Court extended his custody after being told a "large amount of outstanding work" meant the trial would have to be delayed for six months.
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