Eleanor Williams: Barrow MP says lies put town through wringer

Eleanor Williams has been convicted of eight counts of perverting the course of justice.

A woman's lies about being the victim of rape by an Asian grooming gang put her home town "through the wringer", an MP has said.

Eleanor Williams, 22, was found guilty of eight counts of perverting the course of justice, with Conservative Barrow and Furness MP Simon Fell saying she "ruined" people's lives.

Her false Facebook post about being trafficked and beaten was shared more than 100,000 times and led to protests.

Williams will be sentenced in March.

Her accusations went viral in May 2020 after she published pictures of her injuries, which prosecutors said were self-inflicted with a hammer.

• How a woman's gang rape lies sparked outrage

The post sparked demonstrations in her home town of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, and led to former English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson visiting the town to "investigate" the claims.

In a post written after her conviction on his website, Mr Fell said the community was "outraged" by the allegations and Williams' story was "every parent's nightmare".

He said "vultures" began to "circle" the town including "insidious" far-right activists "whipping up tensions".

Eleanor Williams' injuries were self-inflicted, prosecutors said

Mr Fell said he was also visited by families of those Williams' falsely accused who said their lives had been "torn apart" and other Asian constituents who "feared for their and their children's safety due to the colour of their skin".

He said: "People's lives have been ruined as a result of her stories, and Barrow has been put through the wringer.

"One man spent time in prison due to her allegations. Others saw their windows put in. Or received death threats. Others still left town and have not returned. And trust in the police has been shaken."

Mr Fell said there were "so many victims in this story" not least the "real victims of grooming", adding: "[Williams'] story cannot and must not be a barrier to people asking for help and coming forward."

The MP said he hoped Williams would now get "the help she needs" as she was "deeply unwell", adding he wanted Barrow to "begin to heal, learn lessons that will better protect genuine victims, and look to a brighter future".

'Malevolent intent'

Wendy Lloyd from the CPS North West's rape and serious sexual offence unit said Williams "maliciously and persistently made false accusations against several men who had the misfortune of being acquainted with her".

"She knew what she was doing each time and made these false allegations intending that these men would be investigated, potentially prosecuted or even imprisoned as a result of her actions," she said.

"The police and CPS take allegations of sexual offending extremely seriously. Each of Eleanor Williams' accusations were thoroughly investigated, until it became clear that they were completely and incontrovertibly untrue and made with malevolent intent."

The court heard she fabricated text messages from her so-called abusers

She added that false accusations of this kind were "very rare".

"This has been an unusual case and it is important for victims of rape or sexual assault to understand that they should never fear coming forward to report the crime to police," she said.

"The CPS will never prosecute somebody for perverting the course of justice simply because, for instance, there may be discrepancies in the evidence or because the victim chooses not to continue to support a case or if the prosecution stops the case, or if a jury finds the defendant not guilty.

"A prosecution will only be brought where there is clear evidence that allegations were provably false, maliciously made and that it is the public interest to do so."