The $30 million lie exposed

A 12-year-old girl who was arrested and charged after a Bulgarian man falsely claimed she called him a 'f***ing migrant' has been vindicated after he was found guilty of assault.

The case drew parallels to the murder of Henry Nowak in Southampton, where police believed the lies of Sikh killer Vickrum Digwa, who stabbed Mr Nowak six times with an eight-inch ceremonial sword and then falsely claimed the 18-year-old student had racially abused him.

Ilia Belov, 22, had followed his 12-year-old victim and three other girls through Dundee last August, yelling at her: 'Come here sexy. I will show you how to have a good time.'

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Belov filmed the 12-year-old brandishing a knife and axe at him in footage that led to her arrest. The viral video was shared on X by Elon Musk, who said: 'What kind of government arrests little girls who try to defend themselves?'

But the schoolgirl was vilified when First Minister John Swinney condemned Musk's defence as 'deliberate misinformation' and the SNP leader accused the billionaire of trying to 'undermine' community cohesion.

Police Scotland released a statement saying a 'Bulgarian couple' had been 'approached by youths' as the authorities appeared to pin the blame on her.

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Yesterday the girl, now 13, and her sister, now 14, were called 'impressive' and 'eloquent' witnesses as they were praised for telling the truth.

Belov claimed he had acted in self-defence and alleged the girl called him 'a f***ing migrant' when he walked past to buy cigarettes . In fact he called her 'sexy' and pushed her over.

His evidence was dismissed as 'wholly unconvincing... revisionist and self-serving' by Sheriff Tim Niven-Smith after he was found guilty of assaulting the 12-year-old.

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Outside court yesterday, the girls' mother said all four children had been vindicated for telling the truth while Belov's lies had been exposed.

'They were telling the truth and they were slandered. There were too many lies at the start, so I'm glad it has all come out,' she said.

'It's been heartbreaking. They told the truth from the start but no one believed them. Everyone was more focused on the axe than anything else and didn't listen to what really happened.'