A PROBE into the conduct of a councillor at the centre of murder claims has been postponed in the light of new evidence. Richard Barnbrook, a Barking and Dagenham BNP councillor and London Assembly member, was due to answer allegations that he lied when h

A PROBE into the conduct of a councillor at the centre of murder claims has been postponed in the light of new evidence.

Richard Barnbrook, a Barking and Dagenham BNP councillor and London Assembly member, was due to answer allegations that he lied when he maintained that three murders in as many weeks had taken place in the borough. Cllr Barnbrook made the claims on the YouTube website in September.

In the clip he said there had been three murders involving knives.

One later turned out to be the killing of a Dagenham girl in Plaistow. The other two were never accounted for.

It is the second time the hearing before the council's standards committee has been postponed.

Cllr Barnbrook was reported by a fellow councillor who said the far-right politician had brought both his offices into disrepute.

But the committee was forced to postpone Wednesday's hearing when Cllr Barnbrook submitted a dossier of new evidence

The council and the Greater London Authority decided they needed more time to study the information "in the interests of justice".

A council spokesman said late on the previous Monday afternoon Cllr Barnbrook lodged a detailed folder of evidence for consideration.

"A fresh hearing date will be issued in due course," he added.

The hearing was to decide whether to uphold an independent investigation, which claimed Cllr Barnbrook showed "wilful disregard for the truth".

If found guilty, he could be suspended from both authorities - which collectively pay him nearly �63,000 per year - for up to six months.

Cllr Barnbrook claims he is the victim of a political campaign and says he will never stop campaigning against knife crime.

He was first due before the committee on July 21, but did not appear due to stress-related illness.