Labour MP Fiona Onasanya found GUILTY of lying to escape speeding points
The politician was found to have perverted the course of justice at the Old Bailey today, which will likely trigger a by-election in her Peterborough seat
A LABOUR MP's career is in ruins today after she was found guilty of lying to try and escape speeding points on her licence.
Fiona Onasanya, 35, was found to have perverted the course of justice at a retrial at the Old Bailey today, and now faces jail time and a by-election in her seat.
The MP for Peterborough won the seat for Labour in the 2017 general election - with a majority of just 607.
The solicitor, who stood down as a Labour whip last month, was accused of colluding with her brother to avoid three points on her licence by claiming her former lodger was behind the wheel - but he was in Russia 1,800 miles away at the time.
Her Nissan Micra was travelling at 41mph in a 30mph zone just a month before she was elected, as The Sun first revealed in July.
The jury failed to reach a verdict in the first trial, and it went to the Old Bailey to be heard again.
The MP was alleged to have "invented" a phone conversation where her brother confessed to filling in the forms and sending it off without her knowledge.
Prosecutor David Jeremy QC said she had "sacrificed" her brother to get herself off the hook.
"The fact that Ms Onasanya is a determined and resilient teller of her story cannot conceal the implausibilities of that story,"; he said.
"Festus hasn't misled and used her - she has used him.
"She used his dishonest method to evade points and in court she has told a story that aggravates his crime and is designed to get her off this charge."
The MP showed no emotion as she was unanimously convinced today.
She will be sentenced along with her brother Festus, who admitted three charged of perverting the cause of justice three times before his trial began.
During the first trial the MP said she didn't know who was driving her car when it was caught speeding on July 24 last year.
The MP used her maiden speech in Parliament to declare: “I am motivated in all that I do by my abiding faith in God.”
And asked if she wanted to be Britain’s first black PM, she replied: “I absolutely wish to aim high – The sky is not the limit as there are footsteps on the moon!”
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The case is remarkably similar to that of ex-Lib Dem Cabinet Minister Chris Huhne, who lied to try and avoid points on his licence too.
He denied the charge at first but then changed his plea to guilty and resigned as an MP.
He was later sentenced to eight months in prison for perverting the cause of justice.
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