We invite Kristian's mother to tell us how this situation has affected her, and how she is coping.

In April 2007 Kristian and his elder brother had travelled to our home in order to help us celebrate our 30th Wedding Anniversary, which although a low key affair, we were pleased that two of our boys were able to joins us. It was upon his arrival that Kristian explained to us that someone had made an allegation of a sexual nature against him but at that time said that he was confident that as he hadn't done anything wrong that he would be vindicated following an investigation. Added to this he truly believed that all vehicles used by GMP were “looped” which meant that a constant recording of activity inside any police vehicle was taking place 24/7, which would further support his account. The whole allegation overshadowed any celebrations and to this day continues to permeate every aspect of our daily lives.

For the next weeks and months, whilst Kristian was on light duties at Littleborough Police Station and then his subsequent suspension from duty, we kept in touch with him and Carrie and tried to keep both their spirits up with assurances and humour. It was clear as the months went by that Kristian was slowly but surely becoming more frustrated and depressed with the notion that this miscreant, who had a charge sheet longer than two football pitches, was being allowed to exploit the legal system once again. To make matters worse, KJ was concerned about the way in which the investigating officer Paul Barnard was conducting both his enquiries and the taped interviews held with Kristian. Kristian somewhat naively believed that if you haven't done anything wrong, then eventually the truth would prevail. If you asked him now I know that he would tell you that he now holds very different views, not surprisingly.

The last 22 months since the allegations were made, has been probably the worst experience of my life and that of my family. What do you do when somebody maliciously sets out to ruin the good name and future prospects of one of your children. You do what any parent would do, you fight like hell to protect your children, especially when you are privy to the evidence laid against him which proves him to be innocent. Kristian has been fortunate in that he has grown up in a normal happy family, has lots of loyal friends and knows that he is loved dearly. In contrast the delinquent miscreant who's only claim to fame is making numerous false sexual allegations and who has a gold loyalty card for HM Courts system, simply does not have the mental capability to think through her actions. She does however hold numerous A-levels on how to circumvent the legal system.

She will never have the support of a strong family as Kristian has she is what she will always be a liar who is the product of the politically correct social services who do not punish such delinquent behaviour but place more emphasis on “support”. Do I feel sorry for her, NO I DON'T. She makes no effort to remove herself from the seedy world she inhabits, moreover she wallows in it and cries “Vulnerable” when it suits her need, such as in court. Perhaps my feelings may seem uncharitable, but having experienced at first hand the damage this delinquent has been allowed to reek on this family, and many others, I couldn't care less what happens to her save that she isn't facilitated into ruining some other police officers life as he has been allowed to with Kristian.

The difficult part is that this infects every waking hour of your day, you go to bed thinking about it you wake up in the night thinking about it and you get up every morning with a heavy heart because you are simply powerless to stop the madness that has been thrown this family's way.

My mother has recently had a heart attack and has been told by her consultant that it was probably due to the worry and upset caused by this allegation. Just another impact this delinquent has had on our family.

Whatever we do, where ever we go we find it difficult to think about anything other than what has happened to KJ, how to fight the injustice and the system that put him there.

In addition to KJ we have two other sons, one younger one older, who have had to take a back seat during the last 22 months and have carried any problems they have had on their own shoulders for fear of adding to our plate.

Any plans you have are always tarnished by the fact that we need to support KJ & Carrie and that we have to fight the unjust and unsafe guilty verdict. As parents we have to be the pillars that hold the whole family together. Our children need to know that they can look to us for support and guidance and I know they have found it difficult to understand, given the evidence, what has happened to their brother.

Another aspect of this whole sorry saga is the indignities I have watched my son endure. From being forced into discussing aspects of his private life that should have remained just that, to his dealings with the cumbersome machinery that governs a guilty verdict. There is no room for possible miscarriages of justice, as far as they are concerned you have been found guilty so you must be. Prisons, quite rightly are not holiday camps, nor should they be, but just one more indignity my son has to endure on the road to his appeal. We as a family were also sentenced to 22 months. Why not kick him when he is down, next indignity was the Social Service intervention to ensure that Kian was in no danger, which resulted in them saying Kristian posed no threat to his son (well we all needed to know that didn't we) but have stated that he must not be left alone with him. Well you cant write a report that is all positive now can you. And perhaps the last indignity of all, having the incompetencies of the Probation Service inflicted upon you.

They appear to have free reign on how they conduct their interviews with the “convict”. They can write reports which bare no relation to the interview, they can use the wrong file to conduct their interview and subsequent report on you, and when you complaint they just rub their faces, write a few notes, send a few emails and do absolutely nothing. Adding insult to injury they now make sure that the person you complained was incompetent, is now your probation officer in prison. All the time, using their best storyteller voices that somehow you will fold and just give in to make the process a whole lot less challenging for them. KJ is made of sterner stuff and he knows he is innocent so no amount of touchy feely meetings or managed outcomes within the prison walls will change that.

During the last 22 months, We have all experienced anger, sadness, frustration, as parents we have been to the depths of despair, but each day we have to get up, re-charge the batteries and immerse ourselves in the fight to clear KJ's name we are the life-raft that he holds onto to help him fight these bastards and rebuild his and Carrie's lives.

When the guilty verdict came in my feelings were of disbelief, which quickly turned to anger. The anger was not directed at the jury, it was the notion that the verdict clearly reflected the poor defence provided for Kristian, because by no stretch of the imagination did the prosecution prove their case, which is required by English Law. Apparently not the case anymore.

I have a nursing qualification, have studied for a degree and have been a lecturer in further education, and consider myself to have a fairly analytical mind. I can tell you that during the three week trial, I struggled many times to understand the thread or direction of the defence case, and watched as many jurors shared my confusion.

Kristian has been sentenced to 22 months, ½ to be served in prison the ½ out on licence. Having spoken to KJ prior to be sentencing we talked about how he must try to keep strong mentally regardless of any provocation and most importantly to be safe. My main worry has always been that he is a police officer going into a prison and his safety is an issue. We have a family friend who is a prison officer and she was able to give some good advice and assured us that in most cases, prison staff tend to treat police officers OK. What I do know is that it wont be too long before those charged with looking after him inside will come to know the KJ we all know and love and like us question how he got there in the first place.

So what for the future, we shall do what the Abbott family do best, our family motto is Nil Desperandum Carborundum (loosely means don't let the bastards grind you down) and we shall continue to fight to show that Kristian is innocent and we shall fight, despite all attempts to block us, to make sure that the lying delinquent miscreant is held accountable, not just taken off to Wales again by the Social Services in an effort to recover from her trauma.

The only trauma she ever experiences is one of having to tell the truth. I shall also demand that she pays back any compensation she is able to illicit from the Criminal Compensation Board when KJ is proven innocent on Appeal. Why should she have compensation she wasn't entitled to in the first place ?

I hope that I have given you a little insight into what its been like living through the last 22 months. What we can do is look forward, we have a lovely grandson, we have three great boys and our extended families share our determination to fight this injustice.

A personal note for KJ from me

• You and Kian are shining lights during these dark times
• Whatever they do, whatever they say will not change the fact that you are innocent.
• They can take your freedom, they can stop your intake of Jameson’s, but they will never take away your integrity because it's not their's to take.
• 4½ litre bottle of Jameson’s waiting for you son!!