A severely beaten teen girl walked into a police station and reported that she had been violently gang-raped. However, after pointing to an “Asian sex gang” as the culprits, the girl was shocked when she was charged with 7 counts of “perverting justice.”
When 19-year-old Ellie Williams walked into the Cumbria Police station, she was hardly recognizable. Covered from head to toe in bruises and cuts, the teen told police that she had been beaten, burned, drugged, and sex trafficked for years by an organized gang of Pakistani men in northern England, according to the Daily Mail.
Ellie claims that she gave the police names and addresses as well as detailing horrific abuse allegations by the “Asian” gang. She told investigators that there are other girls who are still being abused and held captive by the men. Incredibly, months after filing the report, police made a groundbreaking arrest, but not of any of the alleged rapists.
Cumbria Police confirmed that Ellie has been charged with 7 counts of “perverting the course of justice.” After a year-long investigation into her claims, Detective Chief Superintendent Dean Holden concluded that there was simply not enough evidence to suggest that there is “an organized gang of Asian men” grooming and exploiting girls in Barrow-in-Furness.
“What I would say is, when the question is asked, ‘Is there an organised gang of Asian men in Barrow conducting abuse or other exploitation against individuals?’ Our investigation has shown that has not been corroborated or otherwise evidenced,” Holden said.
However, the same department believes that there is enough evidence to criminally charge Ellie in an ongoing investigation. Additionally, she was arrested weeks later “for breach of her bail conditions” after posting photos of her injuries to social media in response to what she believes is a miscarriage of justice by the police.
She claimed, “I am not the only girl in (the area) who has gone through this or is going through this. I know plenty of girls involved – including girls from away. This is local men and men from away. These are mostly Pakistani men and some are business owners. I wish I could name all of those involved, but due to current ongoing investigations I’m not allowed.”
On social media, Ellie revealed graphic images of the alleged abuse by the grooming gang, including photos of her battered face and body and gashes on her breast and fingers. She claims that members of the gang attempted to hack off her finger and cut off her breasts and nipples in order to force her to comply.
“They have given me drugs to the point I was nearly addicted to heroin. They have stripped me naked, beaten me and dumped me in the middle of nowhere with nothing…no money, phone, ID, clothes, shoes, nothing. They did this once in winter (when) I got found with bad hypothermia. They have broken my ribs and many bones in my face. They have split my ear, cut my throat, attempted to cut my boobs and nipples off,” she wrote.
Ellie claimed that she has a “bleed on the brain” from a serious head injury inflicted during one of the beatings. She also says she has lost some vision from being hit in her eye socket.
Ellie says that she continues to receive death threats from the gang members, and her sister has shared screenshots of text messages allegedly showing communication between Ellie and the suspects.
Despite facing criminal charges, Ellie is determined to speak out against her alleged abusers. Although she says she isn’t allowed to give names, due to the impending investigation, she insists that she will fight for the other girls she says are still being trafficked.
“These are evil yet clever men. They know how to manipulate, convince and threaten girls into staying. When they can’t, they use extreme violence,” Ellie said.
Ellie Williams concluded that she is lucky to be alive and remains grateful that she didn’t end up pregnant or committing suicide. She hopes that her story will shed light on the sex trafficking industry that exploits young girls around the world.
Her case will certainly discourage victims of grooming gangs from coming forward. They will likely believe that reporting such crimes will only bring down criminal charges on themselves and, worse, the wrath of their abusers.
