A radio DJ friend of Jimmy Savile has died in prison, seven years after being jailed for raping and assaulting teenage girls.

Ray Teret, an ex-Radio Caroline presenter from Altrincham, was mentored by paedophile broadcaster Savile in the early days of his career and was said to have followed him around “like a shadow”. He also acted as his driver, according to reports.

A Prison Service spokesman said he died on Tuesday, aged 79.

“HMP Manchester prisoner Ray Teret died in prison on 5 May,” a statement said. “The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed.”

Teret, who was known as Ugly Ray, preyed on girls aged 13 to 15 in the 1960s and 1970s, using his status as a well-known face on the Manchester club scene.

He was jailed for 25 years in 2014 after a jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court convicted him of seven rapes and 11 indecent assaults in relation to 11 complainants.

The cause of his death has not been officially confirmed, although he previously fought off COVID-19 and had been suffering from cancer, according to the Manchester Evening News. His death has been passed to Manchester Coroner’s Office.

During his trial, Teret, who also worked at Piccadilly Radio in Manchester and Staffordshire’s Signal Radio, attempted to distance himself from Savile, who died in 2011.

He claimed they were not close, and said he had never lived with Savile or acted as his chauffeur.

At his sentencing, the judge told Teret: “It is clear that you exploited your celebrity status to sexually abuse young girls when they were between 13 and 15 years of age.

“Those who were raped had little or no understanding what was happening to them and felt they could do little to prevent the abuse taking place.”

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