Woman who lied about being groomed by sex traffickers released early from prison
A fantasist who lied about being groomed by a gang of Asian sex traffickers has been released early from prison.
Eleanor Williams, 24, made the claims to police and in a viral Facebook post where she spoke about being beaten, abused and trafficked.
She also posted pictures of her supposed injuries in the update, which was shared more than 100,000 times.
A court was later told that she had caused them to herself with a hammer.
Williams also claimed she had been made to go to Ibiza to be sexually exploited, was made to work at a brothel in Amsterdam and was sold at an auction over a period of three years.
During her trial at Preston Crown Court, her victims spoke of the damage her false accusations had caused to their lives and mental health, which led to multiple attempted suicides.
Her lies also led to protests in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.
Williams was jailed for eight and half years in March 2023 after being found guilty on eight counts of perverting the course of justice.
She pleaded guilty to a ninth count, admitting that she fabricated evidence while at Styal prison in Cheshire, before her 10-week trial.
Willams, who previously lived in Walney, Cumbria, has since been released on licence ahead of the half-way point in her tariff, it emerged yesterday.
One reader of Cumbria local newspaper The Mail responded: ‘This is absolutely disgusting! She’s barely served any of her eight-year sentence.
‘How is this justice for what she did to those poor men?’
Williams posted the Facebook images showing her badly bruised face in May 2020, by which time police were already suspicious. The update was part of a web of lies which included making a series of sexual allegations against a number of men beginning in 2017, when she was aged just 16.
Police who studied evidence including CCTV and tapes of video interviews and police bodycams found her allegations to be false.
Speaking after the trial, Superintendent Matthew Pearman, of Cumbria Police, said Williams’ allegations led to ‘public displays of mass anger’ in Barrow, with protests held outside the police station and on a retail park.
Members of the British Asian community living in the Cumbrian town reported threats and damage to their business as a result of Williams’ lies.
The Ministry of Justice maintains that offenders released on licence are supervised by the Probation Service and are subject to strict conditions.
They can be recalled to prison for breaching the conditions or showing behaviour suggesting they pose an increased risk to the public.
Licence conditions can include a curfew and wearing a tag and restrictions on where offenders can travel, where they live, who they can contact and can cover phone and internet use.
A prisoner’s release date may also take into account time spent on remand pre-sentence, as directed by the sentencing judge.
A HM Prison and Probation Service spokesperson said: ‘Any individuals released on licence are subject to probation supervision, strict licence conditions and face a return to prison if they break them.’
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