Onasanya, who was elected as Peterborough MP in June last year, denies one charge of perverting the course of justice.
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A jury at the Old Bailey is expected to decide if Labour MP Fiona Onasanya is guilty of perverting the court of justice.
Onasanya, allegedly colluded with her brother Festus to escape prosecution for doing 41mph in a 30mph zone on 24 July last year.
A Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) was sent back to authorities claiming a Russian man was behind the wheel of her Nissan Micra when it was clocked speeding in the village of Thorney, near Peterborough.
But inquiries revealed he was in Russia with his parents at the time.
Onasanya told jurors she had assumed she was in Westminster at the time of the speeding offence and left the NIP at her mother’s house in Cambridge for whoever had borrowed her Nissan Micra to fill in.
Festus later reassured her the NIP had been “sorted”, the court heard.
She said she could not recall a meeting with her former communications manager in Thorney, near Peterborough on the evening the speed camera was triggered nearby.
But she could not rule out being the driver, even though evidence showed she was using her mobile phone in the area at the time.
In a closing speech, her lawyer Christine Agnew QC heaped blame onto Festus, describing him as a “charming chancer”.
When they went together to be interviewed by police, he was “banking” on her status as a solicitor and MP to get him “out of the hole”, jurors were told.
Ms Agnew said: “He is a chancer and he is a dishonest chancer. He is somebody who will manipulate anyone to get out of a hole. If he was driving that is exactly the motivation that would be required to fill that form out wrong.”
She suggested Festus filled in the form as he had done it before and “he thought he could get away with it”.
He already had nine points on his licence and risked disqualification, and his job as a delivery driver, she said.
Ms Agnew said Onasanya was not a woman who “lies, lies and lies again” as the prosecution claim.
Festus Onasanya, 33, from Cambridge, has admitted three charges of perverting the course of justice, including over the incident.
His sister, elected as Peterborough MP in June last year, denies one charge of perverting the course of justice.
Judge Nichola Hilliard QC sent the 11-strong Old Bailey jury out to deliberate on its verdict just after 10:30 on Thursday.
Short HeadlineLabour MP blames brother for speeding ticket
StandfirstOnasanya, allegedly colluded with her brother Festus to escape prosecution for doing 41mph in a 30mph zone on 24 July last year.
A jury at the Old Bailey is expected to decide if Labour MP Fiona Onasanya is guilty of perverting the court of justice.
Onasanya, allegedly colluded with her brother Festus to escape prosecution for doing 41mph in a 30mph zone on 24 July last year.
A Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) was sent back to authorities claiming a Russian man was behind the wheel of her Nissan Micra when it was clocked speeding in the village of Thorney, near Peterborough.
But inquiries revealed he was in Russia with his parents at the time.
Onasanya told jurors she had assumed she was in Westminster at the time of the speeding offence and left the NIP at her mother’s house in Cambridge for whoever had borrowed her Nissan Micra to fill in.
Festus later reassured her the NIP had been “sorted”, the court heard.
She said she could not recall a meeting with her former communications manager in Thorney, near Peterborough on the evening the speed camera was triggered nearby.
But she could not rule out being the driver, even though evidence showed she was using her mobile phone in the area at the time.
In a closing speech, her lawyer Christine Agnew QC heaped blame onto Festus, describing him as a “charming chancer”.
When they went together to be interviewed by police, he was “banking” on her status as a solicitor and MP to get him “out of the hole”, jurors were told.
Ms Agnew said: “He is a chancer and he is a dishonest chancer. He is somebody who will manipulate anyone to get out of a hole. If he was driving that is exactly the motivation that would be required to fill that form out wrong.”
She suggested Festus filled in the form as he had done it before and “he thought he could get away with it”.
He already had nine points on his licence and risked disqualification, and his job as a delivery driver, she said.
Ms Agnew said Onasanya was not a woman who “lies, lies and lies again” as the prosecution claim.
Festus Onasanya, 33, from Cambridge, has admitted three charges of perverting the course of justice, including over the incident.
His sister, elected as Peterborough MP in June last year, denies one charge of perverting the course of justice.
Judge Nichola Hilliard QC sent the 11-strong Old Bailey jury out to deliberate on its verdict just after 10:30 on Thursday.
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