Eggheads star CJ de Mooi ‘suspects’ he killed a homeless man
Eggheads star CJ de Mooi has opened up about a harrowing incident – in which “fully suspects” he killed a man.
The out quiz champ, who has appeared on the show since 2003, opened up about an incident while sleeping rough in Amsterdam.
Revealing he was approached by a knife-wielding mugger in the city, he said: “He caught me on the wrong day and I just snapped.
“This is the one incident of my life I do regret. I was in a phone box and this old guy, obviously a massive drug user, came up behind me with a knife in his hand.
“He told me to turn around, open my bag and give him whatever was inside.
“I punched him so hard in the face, knocked the knife out of his hand and threw him in the canal. I fully suspect I killed him. I’ve no idea what happened to him.
“It was the only outburst of violence I’ve ever done. That’s one of the main reasons why I absolutely abhor all violence.”
The incident was revealed in his book, ‘CJ: My Journey from the Streets to the Screen’, which was released this week.
The book also deals with his experiences growing up in “a violent, racist, homophobic household”.
He said previously: “They were very abusive – physically, verbally – and I remember several occasions where I had scalding hot coffee thrown in my face.
“I was beaten, I was attacked. I had things thrown at me that you really wouldn’t expect, including broken glass.
“I don’t refer to them as my family. They are just blood relatives. After my 17th birthday, I walked out in a thunderstorm with just the clothes on my back.”
The star recently caused controversy with claims that he was “banned” from Strictly Come Dancing because he wanted to dance with a man.
However, the BBC insisted it had not offered him a place on the series.
