A woman who fled the country after giving a false statement to police investigating former Redbridge councillor Chaudhary Mohammed Iqbal's electoral fraud has been jailed.

Iqual's former tenant Kristina Stankeviciute pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice last week following her extradition back to the UK from Lithuania.

The 35-year-old was charged after making a false witness statement about the address of Iqbal, who was convicted and jailed last year.

Iqbal - who lived in Cecil Avenue, Barking at the time - lied about his address so he could run as a Redbridge councillor in 2018.

While being investigated, he continued to claim he lived at a rental property in Ilford and encouraged Stankeviciute to give a false account to police on his behalf.

She fled the country while awaiting trial alongside Iqbal but was arrested in Lithuania last September, before being brought back the UK on March 29.

Stankeviciute, formerly of Dingle Hollow, Oldbury, was jailed for 20 weeks at Southwark Crown Court on April 6.

She was also sentenced to four weeks, to be served at the time, for failing to appear at court while on bail for the offence.