Mother of ‘fantasist’ who lied to ‘Asian gang’ has ‘failed to return £22,000 donated by well-wishers’

The mother of a fanatic who lied about being raped by an Asian “grooming gang” has reportedly still not returned £22,000 raised by well-wishers.

Eleanor Williams, 22, insisted she had been trafficked, beaten and sexually assaulted by a gang in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, since she was 12.

Compassionate members of the public donated to a Justgiving appeal to pay for Williams’ fight for “justice,” reports The Mirror.

However, last month a jury convicted Williams of eight counts of perversity after concluding that she fabricated the abuse allegations.

With the case closed, Shane Yerrell, who organized the Justgiving site, urges Williams’ mother, Allison Johnston, to return the money, which was raised in good faith for a fraudulent cause.

Eleanor Williams claimed she was molested by an Asian grooming gang in Barrow, Cumbria

Allison Johnston, a 51-year-old Labor councilwoman in Barrow (pictured), insisted her daughter Eleanor Williams was a victim of assault and human trafficking

Mr Yerrell, 39, a Tory councilor from Waltham Forest, Essex, said: “People have given from the goodness of their hearts and we have all been tricked.

“I keep texting her but she remains reluctant, claiming she needs legal advice. Your daughter was convicted more than a month ago, the money is to be paid back.

“The whole appeal for donations was based on lies. It seems wrong that the family has the money.’

Ms Johnston, a Labor Party councilor in Barrow, was suspended from the party after the trial. To date, she has allegedly refused to repay the sum.

Last month, she claimed to MailOnline that Williams was the subject of a National Referral Mechanism (NRM) order alleging she had been trafficked for sex from the age of 12.

Ms Johnston said: “According to the order, Ellie was a victim of exploitation and trafficking from the age of 12. Personally I don’t think so because I think as her mother I would have known something was happening to her at such a young age.

“But for us, her family, she says she was telling the truth, that she was a victim as she claimed, and as her mother, I believe her.

“There were some things she claimed that I don’t think were true, there were parts of it that she made up. But I believe she was essentially telling the truth and was a victim of abuse and human trafficking.”

Cllr Johnson was contacted by MailOnline today for further comment.

Eleanor Williams claimed she was molested by an Asian grooming gang in Barrow, Cumbria

Williams sparked outrage in the Cumbrian town of Barrow when she took to social media to claim she was groomed, trafficked and beaten in 2020.

Her false stories involved self-injury and had a profound impact on her six victims – at least one man told the media he felt suicidal after being clouded by the lurid allegations.

Prosecutors compared some of their evidence of being “sold” at an auction in Amsterdam to a scene from the Liam Neeson film Taken.

Restaurant owner Mohammed Ramzan, who Williams claimed had cared for her since she was 12, was arrested for her lies and said he and his family had received more than 500 death threats.

He branded her “delusional” and “a fantasist” in court.

It heightened racial tensions – windows were smashed at a curry house and a Muslim diner owner was chased down the street by men who poured alcohol over his head.

It also painted a target on the backs of the men she accused – one man saw his wife leave him over the allegations, while another family was forced to move out of town altogether.

The 22-year-old posted photos on social media claiming to show injuries caused by the abuse (pictured), but these turned out to be self-inflicted

Evidence she posted on social media, including messages from men who allegedly abused her, was found by police to be misleading or outright false.

Rather than being a victim of a grooming gang, Williams was a liar who caused her own injuries as part of a fantasy, the jury found. She could now be sent to prison.

Yesterday she was found guilty of eight counts of perversion of justice after an 11-week trial at Preston Crown Court.

These included allegations that she had been drugged and raped by multiple people since she was 12, and that she had been trafficked to places like Ibiza and Amsterdam, where she was abused by men.

Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford KC likened the allegation to a scene from the Liam Neeson film Taken, in which the main character tracks down a human trafficking gang who had kidnapped his daughter.

Williams had claimed that business owner Mohammed Ramzan nursed her from the age of 12 and used her in brothels in Amsterdam and sold her at auction there.

But the court heard at the time she was in the Dutch capital that his bank card was being used at a B&Q in Barrow.

Faced with evidence that she had been with her sister and her sister’s boyfriend the entire time in Amsterdam and that the abuse could not have taken place, Williams claimed her version of events was correct.

On another occasion, she accused a man of threatening to kill her unless she had sex with eight men in Blackpool, local newspaper The Mail reported.

Williams’ claims that she was molested by a foster gang were found false by a jury

Former English Defense League leader Tommy Robinson, pictured here at a protest in Telford last year, went to a demonstration in Barrow following claims made by Williams

After an 11-week trial at Preston Crown Court, Williams was found guilty of eight counts of perversion of justice

But that was another fake, with CCTV showing she checked into a hotel and then stayed inside except for a short walk to the shops.

She accused another man, Jordan Trengove, of raping her – an allegation that led to him spending 10 weeks in pre-trial detention.

He was eventually acquitted when police discovered he was in the back of one of their vans at the exact time he was alleged to have raped her – he had been arguing at a taxi rank when officers spotted him.

Despite this alibis and the complete lack of evidence, he was found guilty in the social media court.

Someone painted the word “rapist” on their house and the windows were smashed.

Evidence Williams gave police about the alleged rape, including Snapchat logs that allegedly showed he admitted it, was later found to be fabricated and created over the Wi-Fi at Williams’ mother’s home.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk