Bracknell Council leader Mary Temperton has expressed solidarity with a young victim and the council has vowed to tighten up its checks after two ceremonial figures were found guilty at Winchester Crown Court.
Cllr Naheed Ejaz, 61, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice and her son was found guilty of the rape of a 15-year-old girl, after feeding her the drug Ecstacy, also known as MDMA.
The former mayor had refused to let officers into her house for over 90 seconds in May 2024, giving Diwan Khan time to conceal a telephone, which was believed to store a video of him sexually assaulting the teenager.
Khan, 41, who was found guilty of rape, had served as the Mayor’s escort and was pictured receiving the chains of office as Labour took control of Bracknell Forest for the first time in a generation.
Ejaz stepped down from her councillor role in September 2024. A by-election was held in November 2024 for the seat.
The leader, and Ms Ejaz’s co-ward councillor, Mary Temperton, said: “I was appalled to learn of the crimes Diwan Khan and Naheed Ejaz have been charged and found guilty of and my thoughts go out to all those whose lives have been affected.
“Sexual violence will never be accepted.
“When Naheed Ejaz was selected to stand for councillor back in 2023, we had no reason to suspect that she would be involved in any criminal proceedings.
“After her own arrest in September 2024, Naheed Ejaz resigned as a councillor – this was the first time I was aware of the investigation and her involvement.
“I want to thank the brave victim for coming forward and showing such courage and I also want to thank the police for their full and thorough investigation to secure justice.”
The council Chief Executive, Susan Halliwell, said: “Our thoughts are with the brave young victim who has shown enormous courage.
“Sexual assault and sexual violence have no place in our society.
“We want to assure our residents that we will always play our part in ending sexual abuse and supporting victims.
“We’d like to thank the police for bringing about justice in this harrowing case, which will undoubtedly have a long-lasting and life changing impact on the victim.
“The crimes the former mayor, Naheed Ejaz, and former mayoral consort, Diwan Khan, have been found guilty of were not committed while either of them were in their mayoral roles.
“They were also not committed in relation to Ejaz’s role as councillor, which she stepped down from in September 2024.
“As such, the council was not party to the investigation or asked to support it.
“The crimes were committed in Ejaz and Khan’s personal life outside of their civic roles.
“This does not make the crimes any less heinous, but we want to reassure residents that the crimes were not carried out during, or as part of, council business.
“Again, we would like to express that our sincere and deepest thoughts are with the very brave young victim, her family and her friends.”
In response to the incident and to new government guidance the Council has agreed to ramp up its checks on elected officials.
After a consultation with all councillors, the council’s Cabinet agreed a policy on DBS checks for all councillors and the mayoral consort.
The new policy was agreed and implemented in October 2024. All our serving councillors Bracknell have complied with this and have a current DBS check.
The policy states that councillors should renew their DBS check annually, which the council will support them with in terms of administration.
