URI Geller has claimed he “shouted” at Michael Jackson as he urged him to “stop talking about sleeping with boys.”
The King of Pop struck up a close friendship with the famed psychic, 74, known for his ability to bend spoons, in the 1990s and was even best man at Uri’s wedding.
Jackson, one of the biggest selling musical artists in history, was plagued by allegations of sexual assault against underage boys – claims he always denied until his death in 2009.
After paying accuser Jordan Chandler more than $20million in a settlement in 1993, the Thriller singer appeared on camera 10 years later hand-in-hand with 12-year-old Gavin Arvizo admitting they slept in the same bed together.
That confession, made during the Martin Bashir documentary Living with Michael Jackson, sparked a criminal trial in California in which the pop star was acquitted of all charges.
Yet, the damage to his reputation was considerable something which “devastated” the eccentric entertainer, says his friend Uri.
Speaking to The Sun Online, the Israeli-born spoon bender said he believed Michael – who died from a drug overdose – was innocent of all charges.
But he revealed he issued a frank warning to his pal following the Bashir doc.
Uri told The Sun Online: “I shouted at him many times, Michael stop talking about you sleeping with boys in your bed because the world doesn’t understand you.”
Uri insists that while Jackson, who amassed millions from buying music publishing rights as well as writing his own songs, was a clever businessman, he was “naïve” when it came to his personal life.
“He was so naïve, my god he was like a child,” Uri told The Sun Online.
“He was very shrewd in his business in the singing and music world – but totally and utterly naïve in his civilian world.”
In 2019, a new documentary titled Leaving Neverland featured testimony from two of Jackson’s former child companions Wade Robson and James Safechuck.
Both accused the singer of grooming and sexually abusing them when they were small children.
Wade was aged just seven when he was allegedly first abused by the entertainer.
But, despite their allegations and the storm around the doc, Uri says he does not believe them.
“I saw Leaving Neverland but I never believed it,” he told The Sun Online.
“Look I’ve never been to Neverland. I met Michael here, he was my best man and I never detected anything.”
Michael Jackson always denied all allegations of misconduct made against him.
When Jackson died in 2009, Uri revealed he once hypnotised the singer and asked if had ever “touched a child in an inappropriate manner?”
The singer had asked the Israeli to hypnotise him to stop him from eating junk food.
Uri claims the superstar, apparently incapable of lying in his deep sleep, replied: “No I would never do that.”
The psychic then asked him: “Why did you pay Jody Chandler millions of dollars?”
And according to Uri, Jackson replied: “Because I couldn’t take it any more, I’d had enough.”
The spoon-bender helped organise the Bashir film which soured his relationship with Michael.
Despite this, Uri still insists Jackson was not a sex offender.
He said: “To this day I believe Michael was innocent .
He was naïve, childlike, vulnerable – but not in his music world there he was a genius.
