EXCLUSIVE: They now sit as an impartial after being expelled from Sir Keir Starmer’s get together in March.
Councillor Kathleen Fraser now sits as an impartial (Picture: Brent Council)
An former Labour councillor has denied telling a sexual assault sufferer to not inform the police about what occurred to her. The girl, who was attacked by infamous rapist and killer Ronald Evans, 85, in 2022, described how his eyes “glistened” and turned “black” in the course of the lead as much as the incident. The predator had spent 50 years in jail for killing 21-year-old Kathleen Heathcote in 1963, and committing a number of intercourse offences between 1977 and 1979 in Bristol.
He was launched in 2018, whereupon, he moved to London. In 2022, he coerced a girl into going to his flat, the place he groped her after admitting to killing Ms Heathcote, which he claimed was unintended, after overlaying her mouth to cease her from screaming. In 2023, Evans was as soon as once more imprisoned for his newest assault.
The sufferer met Evans at an occasion run by then-Labour councillor Kathleen Fraser, who supplied a personality witness and a defence assertion in help of the intercourse offender throughout his trial. The girl later filed a grievance in opposition to Fraser to the Labour Celebration in January 2024. In Could 2025, Ms Fraser was appointed as Deputy Mayor of Brent.
She was suspended from Labour in June that 12 months – 18 months after Evan’s newest sufferer raised her concern with the get together – earlier than being expelled 9 months in a while March 18 this 12 months.
Ronald Evans was jailed in 2023 after being launched in 2018 following a protracted sentence (Picture: -)
The sufferer alleged that Cllr Fraser, who now sits as an impartial at Brent Council, advised her: “Do not report it to the police; I will cope with it. Depart it with me. I do not need you to be additional bruised by their damaging response.”
She purportedly pleaded with the councillor to report the incident to the police, however she “refused” to and carried out a “hate vendetta” in opposition to the sufferer while “defending” Evans.
Fraser “tried to silence” the girl, she claimed.
She added: “I received house. I advised my neighbour about it, advised my associates about it. Then I advised Kathleen one thing horrible had occurred to me.”
The girl added that she “believed in her”, and, as she was the sufferer of sexual assualt, and Fraser was a girl, she anticipated her to help her, and provides her a hug and say, “Oh, God… that is terrible.”
“Saving that,” she added, “do your job and be neutral.
“Ban him from attending, [encourage] me to report it to the police.”
She trusted Fraser and so took her recommendation, Evans’s sufferer mentioned.
The girl wrote in a witness assertion to the Labour Celebration: “By sheer persistence, and with completely no assist from these in authority who ought to’ve intervened on my behalf, I despatched Ronald Evans again behind bars unable to reoffend and assault any additional ladies.
“Kathleen Fraser is unfit for the workplace of Labour Councillor and is unfit to signify the general public curiosity. Her behaviour and manner throughout this entire affair was wholly inappropriate.
“She will not be the selfless individual {that a} good councillor ought to aspire to be, however is self-serving and solely considers her personal pursuits.”
Cllr Fraser advised The Specific: “I take any allegation of this nature extraordinarily severely. In July 2022, when [the victim] spoke to me, I inspired her to hunt applicable help in reporting the matter to the police. I didn’t discourage her from contacting the police at any time.
“At that stage, I understood that the incident described had taken place outdoors of any neighborhood exercise I used to be concerned in, and I used to be not conscious of the person’s background or any related restrictions. As such, I didn’t have the authority or data required to take formal motion past encouraging the matter to be reported.
“As soon as the matter was reported, I totally cooperated with the police investigation and supplied a proper assertion. I later attended courtroom when known as as a witness and gave proof to help the judicial course of.
“All through, my focus has been on encouraging applicable reporting, supporting these concerned, and appearing responsibly throughout the limits of my function locally.
“On condition that this matter has been topic to a prison course of, I’m not in a position to remark additional on particular particulars.”
The Labour Celebration advised the sufferer on April 1 that her grievance was thought of by the Nationwide Constitutional Committee (NCC) at a listening to on March 18.
It added: “Following that listening to, the NCC decided that the allegations had been upheld and that the suitable consequence is that Cllr Fraser be expelled from membership of the Labour Celebration.
“Cllr Fraser has been knowledgeable of the result this afternoon.
“The case is now closed and we wish to thanks on your endurance throughout this course of.”
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In an announcement dated March 17, Cllr Fraser introduced her choice to give up the Labour Celebration with rapid impact.
The sufferer described the councillor as “somebody who jumped earlier than they had been pushed”.
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