Mum of teen who lied about being raped by Asian gang has not repaid £22k donated
A woman whose daughter lied about being raped by an Asian gang has still not returned £22,000 given by well-wishers.
More than 1,000 donated when Eleanor Williams, then 19, claimed in 2020 she had been trafficked, beaten and drugged in Barrow, Cumbria.
The money was to help her pay her legal bills in her “fight for justice”.
Last month her stories were exposed as fantasies when she was found guilty of perverting the course of justice.
Around £22,000 raised on JustGiving went to her mum Allison Johnston – who is now being urged by the man who launched the appeal to hand it to charity.
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Shane Yerrell said: “People donated out of the kindness of their hearts and we were all tricked. I keep messaging her but she keeps stalling and claims she needs to take legal advice. Her daughter was convicted more than a month ago, the money should be returned.
“The whole fundraising appeal was based on lies. It seems wrong for the family to have the cash.”
Eleanor posted photos on social media of injuries she said were from being beatenMrs Johnston, a Labour councillor in Barrow, was suspended by the party after the trial, pending a probe.
Since the verdicts, she has reportedly stood by her daughter, telling Mail Online: “There were some things that I do believe were not true. But I do believe that substantially she was telling the truth and was the victim of abuse and trafficking. I don’t believe that Ellie inflicted those injuries on herself.”
Her daughter, now 22, was convicted at Preston crown court on January 3 and will be sentenced in March.
A jury heard the “serial liar” invented incredible stories and even hit herself with a hammer.
She claimed abusers broke her bones, cut her throat, branded her and “stripped me naked and dumped me in the middle of nowhere”.
Williams accused one man of selling her at a slave auction in Amsterdam but phone and bank records placed him in B&Q in Barrow at the time.
Allison says she believes her daughter has told the truth for the most partAnother she accused of being an Asian drug dealer who threatened to kill her unless she had sex with multiple men. But he turned out to be a white Tesco worker from Essex who she had been speaking to on a dating site.
Some of the accused men said her lies had ruined their lives.
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One spent 10 weeks on remand in jail, including in a cell with a paedophile, while another had his house and business premises attacked.
JustGiving paid the fundraising cash to Mr Yerrell, who sent it to Mrs Johnston.
A message Eleanor is believed to have faked (bbc.co.uk)A contract between them apparently allows her to keep it until July – after which it must go to charity.
Two have declined the cash but the James Bulger Memorial Trust and a Barrow-based charity will take it.
Mr Yerrell added: “The circumstances have changed entirely from when the contract was drawn up.”
JustGiving said: “The amount donated was released to the fundraiser in line with our usual process.”
Mr Yerrell, 39, a Tory councillor from Waltham Abbey, Essex, has raised thousands of pounds for people going through traumatic situations since he was attacked by thugs in 2007. Mrs Johnston was asked for comment.
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