Mother of woman who made up story about Asian grooming gang is accused of not returning donation money
By Bryan Ke
Allison Johnston, a now-suspended Labor Party member on Barrow Borough Council, has yet to return the money donated to her daughter Eleanor William’s legal justice fund, according to reports.
Shane Yerrell, a Tory councilor in Essex, England, who organized the appeal to get the money back, reportedly vowed to retrieve the money and use it for charity.
“There is no grooming gang, so the money can never be spent on what it was meant to be spent on,” Yerrell said, as quoted by the Daily Mail.
Eleanor Williams, now 22 years old, was sentenced on Tuesday to eight-and-a-half years in prison after being convicted of eight counts of acts tending and intended to pervert the course of justice in January.
Despite Williams’ conviction in January, Yerrell claimed that Johnston has still not returned the money.
He also added that the Williams’ mother “ignored” his messages when he asked her to donate 3,000 pounds (approximately $3,670) to help the family of a terminally ill 3-year-old girl bring her to Lapland UK, a tourist attraction in England.
Yerrell, who also helped organize the Get Justice for Ellie fund, addressed Johnston in a YouTube interview with DMC Daily, telling the woman, “As a mother, you should put yourself in that little girl’s mother’s situation… I think it’s disgusting to hold on to [the money].”
Yerrell agreed that the money would be split between the charities Maggie Oliver Foundation and Women’s Community Matters if no alleged abusers were put behind bars. Although the two charities have already declined the money, Yerrell said two other charities would receive the donated funds.
Yerrell has reportedly been trying to get the money back from Johnston since February.
Speaking to the Mirror at the time, Yerrell called out Johnston for keeping the money, saying it “seems wrong for the family to have the cash.”
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.
Williams’ story made headlines a few years back after her 1,300-word Facebook post became viral in May 2020, receiving over 100,000 shares at the time.
In her post, Williams falsely claimed that she was brutally abused by an Asian grooming gang. She also shared pictures of self-inflicted injuries to her face using a claw hammer, which she claimed were from a beating she received from her supposed abusers.
Shortly after her sentencing was announced, Mohammed Ramzan, a father-of-four who was one of Williams’ victims, said he wanted to sue the authorities after being targeted by several people who supported Williams.
“I respect the investigation team but I feel let down by Barrow police,” Ramzan, who also goes by the name Mo, told Mirror. “I got more than 500 death threats but nothing was done, we received no help or support.”
Williams accused Ramzan of having groomed her since she was 12, an accusation that he said made his life “hell on earth.”
Besides the authorities, Ramzan said he is also considering going after celebrities and public figures who shared Williams’ allegations on Facebook.
My businesses stopped, no one was going to buy from an ice cream van owned by a man classed as a paedophile. The last four years have felt like a war. I’m now £187,000 in debt. I think I’ve got PTSD, it’s broken me emotionally. I’m always tearing up. I wasn’t like that before.
Ramzan also supports Yerrell’s effort to get the money back from Johnston.
“I said to Shane, ‘We need to get this money back for the people,’” the 43-year-old said.
Although the Daily Mail report noted that no money was ever given back, Ramzan’s interview with the Mirror revealed that Yerrell managed to get back 7,158 pounds (approximately $8,800) from Johnston’s account.
“Shane gave them all the documents and evidence they needed, and £7,158 was refunded to him,” Ramzan said. “The bank said that was all the money that was in the account.”
The remaining 14,000 pounds (approximately $17,000) is still missing, to which Ramzan noted, “We’ve launched a civil action against Allison Johnston to get the rest of the money back. If she doesn’t respond, we’ll take it to the small claims court.”
Share this Article
Share this Article
