Now five victims of Rotherham grooming gangs claim police officers also sexually abused them at the time
One says she was raped from the age of 12 by a serving South Yorkshire Police officer in a marked car, the BBC reports.
He would threaten to hand her back to the gang if she did not comply, she says.
The woman is one of five who allege that as children they were exploited by corrupt police as well as grooming gangs.
Among officers alleged to have preyed on girls is PC Hassan Ali.
He died in 2015 having been hit by a car on the day he was suspended over alleged misconduct during the abuse scandal.
At least 1,400 girls in Rotherham were abused by gangs of men - mainly of Pakistani heritage - between 1997 and 2013, Prof Alexis Jay concluded in a landmark report in 2014.
South Yorkshire Police's major crime unit is currently conducting the inquiry into the involvement of police officers in the Rotherham grooming scandal under the 'direction and control' of police watchdog the IOPC.
Three former South Yorkshire officers have been arrested on suspicion of historic sexual offences including attempted rape, indecent assault and misconduct in a public office while they were on duty.
None has been charged.
Written accounts by grooming gang survivors collected by specialist child abuse lawyers allege years of abuse by serving police officers in Rotherham from the mid-1990s to early 2000s.
Most were girls in their teens at the time but some were as young as 11, according to the shocking report.
One reports hearing a police officer having sex with girls in exchange for drugs and money.
Another says she witnessed one supplying class A drugs to a grooming gang.
Three describe being beaten up by officers as children, including in a police cell.
One victim given the pseudonym Willow told the broadcaster she was sexually abused by hundreds of men over five years after first being targeted aged 11 - two of them police officers.
'He knew where we used to hang out, he would request either oral sex or rape us in the back of the police car,' she said.
'In a world where you were being abused so much, being raped once [each time] was a lot easier than multiple rapes and I think he knew that.'
According to Willow, after she was pressured into an illegal abortion by the grooming gang, a youth worker contacted social services and the police.
But she says one of the officers who had been abusing her turned up to interview her, leaving her 'destroyed', later ripping her statement up and throwing it in a bin.
According to the BBC she named PC Hassan Ali as having raped her.
He died in January 2015, a week after being hit by a car.
On the same day he had been put on restricted duties because of an investigation into alleged misconduct in the abuse scandal.
He was never arrested.
Another victim, 'Emma', who was in care in the late 1990s, said she would be raped by a police officer in a squat.
'He knew we wouldn't be missed, he knew we wouldn't be reported,' she told the BBC.
'He knew we wouldn't be able to say anything.'
Amy Clowrey from Switalskis, who has been collecting the testimony, said the accounts of alleged police were 'beyond belief'.
'There has been no accountability in the town - and without accountability, there will continue to be a distrust of South Yorkshire Police,' she added.
Prof Jay today said she is 'shocked' that the force is investigating its own former officers.
She told the BBC there were 'legitimate' reasons for victims to feel 'a total lack of trust' in the force.
Calling for an outside force or the Inspectorate of Constabulary to be brought in to investigate, she told the BBC that there was a risk of institutions prioritising 'protecting their reputation' over 'the welfare of children'.
Today South Yorkshire Assistant Chief Constable Hayley Barnett insisted that victims and survivors were 'at the heart of this investigation and all of our actions continue to be made in their best interests'.
She added: 'We have a dedicated team of detectives working on this case who have worked diligently to explore all lines of enquiry. This has led to three arrests.
'One of those former officers remains on police bail pending further enquiries. The other two have been released from bail while the investigation continues.
'The investigation is overseen by the IOPC, which has directed South Yorkshire Police to investigate on its behalf.'
In addition the force is 'working closely' with the National Crime Agency, she added.
The force told the BBC that PC Ali had faced 'allegations of persistently asking a victim on a date, sharing information and failure to safeguard victims'.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct said it was informed by South Yorkshire Police of allegations of historic abuse by its officers last year.
It subsequently instructed the force to carry out an investigation 'under our direction and control'.
A spokesman said: 'We have been in contact with solicitors representing some of the victim-survivors regarding further reports of offending to ensure that any new complaints are investigated.
'The investigation has since widened to involve complaints from six women.
'We want victim-survivors to feel confident that all complaints will be treated extremely seriously and sensitively.
'We encourage any victim-survivors or any witnesses to come forward if they have not already done so.'
It told the BBC it was 'satisfied that there is no conflict of interest' and that it had been assured by South Yorkshire Police that none of the investigating officers worked with those currently under investigation.
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Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Our benefits street is like a slum… people flog sex at all hours & I strung up wall of dead rats to deter druggies
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) DODGING a squashed rat, a young man and woman race each other on mobility scooters, while the distinctive smell of weed momentarily interrupts the putrid stench of decaying rubbish. Meanwhile mountains of black bin liners are strewn across streets, many of which spew their contents onto the pavements, while piles of mattresses, fridge freezers and sofas congregate in back alleys. 17 Eastwood, an area of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, has been branded 'lawless' by desperate locals Credit: Glen Minikin 17 The issue of fly-tipped rubbish is so acute it's causing the rat population to soar Credit: Glen Minikin 17 One angry resident, granddad-of-11 Dave Russell, created a 'Wall of Rats' with some of his kills to demonstrate the scale of the problem to the council Credit: Glen Minikin This is Eastwood, an area of Rotherham in South Yorkshire branded 'lawless' by desperate locals, some of whom claim it's become a total no-go area at night due to escalating issues with anti-social behaviour, drugs and loud parties. The problem is so bad that a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) issued by the council in 2019 has now been extended to 2028 - with demands that residents refrain from street drinking and partying until the small hours, dumping rubbish on the streets, and bring in their wheelie bins to curb the ever-expanding rodent population. Locals say they have been battling for months to keep the vermin under control - with one desperate man stringing up a line of 20 carcasses on a fence to show the council the harrowing extent of the problem. Father-of-two Andrew Wilshaw, 45, tells The Sun when we visit: 'This used to be a great area but in the past 10 years it has gone downhill before my eyes. 'I am doing my best to help it. We didn't have much but we had standards. Now it's more like a third world country.' The main streets covered by the PSPO are Fitwilliam Road, the Doncaster Road corridor, Eldon Road and the stretch up to the Mushroom roundabout. South Yorkshire Police records showed anti-social behaviour incidents in the area had "increased steadily" since the order was last renewed, with 568 reports between 2021-2024. A total of 60 Fixed Penalty Notices have been issued since the order was introduced in 2019 - though we witnessed several violations on our visit alone. Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council does try to keep up with demand by making clear-up trips six days a week - but still the rubbish piles up. Andrew, who works in security, now patrols the area every Monday morning taking photos documenting the damage from the weekend in an attempt to help clean up his community. I live in UK's saddest council estate with 'carpet' of 800 vodka bottles… it makes Shameless look like The Borrowers He set up the Facebook group How Clean in Eastwood, which has 800 members. Andrew - who took us around the areas in our car fearing we'd be a target if we walked around with expensive camera equipment - says: 'I started posting the sights and rubbish I saw on my own Facebook page but it blew up, so I set up the dedicated page around a year ago. 'The idea is that we shame the council into action, because the PSPOs they have in place do nothing. 'A lot of people will get me to post their photos for them because they're too scared of reprisals to do it themselves. 'All the people who used to care have had enough and moved out. Most of those left living in this mayhem are the elderly. It's awful. 'I moved in with my ill parents a bit further up the road around 10 years ago and managed to sell my house in the thick of the problem area. 'I thank God that happened because I wouldn't get anything for it now.' 'Wall of Rats' 17 Father-of-two Andrew Wilshaw set up the Facebook group How Clean in Eastwood, which has 800 members, to try to shame the council into action Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Dave has started laying down poison, and has gone through two tubs in the past three months Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Dave hung up a string of rodent carcasses outside his house Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Some residents say they are too scared to let their kids play outside because there are so many rats and rodent faeces Credit: Glen Minikin Petty crime and the brazen dumping of rubbish - which is fuelling a surging population of rodents - is blighting the lives of many Eastwood residents we speak to. Granddad-of-11 Dave Russell, 74, created a 'Wall of Rats' with some of his kills. He explains: 'The rats used to be lined all across but the birds have been eating them. 'I did it to show the council how bad it is for us. This is what we live with. 'It also stops the local druggies coming here and using it as a place to hang about. 'My garden fence is topped with barbed wire to stop burglars after our shed was broken into a few years back. We also have CCTV. The rats used to be lined all across but the birds have been eating them. I did it to show the council how bad it is for us. This is what we live with Dave Russell 'You can't have your back door open for fear you'll get a rat in your house. You see them darting across your garden all the time. 'I catch three or four every day. I used to leave live traps and then kill them by drowning them - the snapper traps leave a bit of a mess. 'I have started laying down poison, it's £9 for a pack of 20 - in the past three months I've used two tubs. But still we have so many, it does nothing to keep the numbers down. 'Nobody should have to live like this, we are constantly bleaching and cleaning because rats are full of disease.' Father-of-one Mohammed Khan, 34, has had to replace his Mitsubishi Outlander 4x4 car three times after rats got inside and chewed wires. He says: 'They're rampant. I'd say I've spent around £25- £30,000 on cars over the last couple of years. 'Once they've got in and eaten the foam that's it, your car is done for. 'I spend around £80 a month on pest control to try and make my garden safe for my child but really you can't let your kid play outside in this. 'It's far too dangerous. Even if you don't see a rat, there is poo left behind.' 'Lawless' 17 Resident Kaz Gunn refuses to move from the estate even though she's had to get her door replaced twice from thugs constantly bashing it Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Petty crime and the brazen dumping of rubbish - which is fuelling a surging population of rodents - is blighting the lives of many Eastwood residents we speak to Credit: Glen Minikin 17 The council does extra clean-up operations in the area, but frustrated locals say it doesn't seem to make much difference Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Kaz says some residents have mobility scooters even though they're not disabled Credit: Glen Minikin Resident Kaz Gunn, 55, refuses to move from the estate even though she's had to get her door replaced twice from thugs constantly bashing it. Kaz, who suffers with osteoporosis, says: 'I always speak out and take photos of people throwing rubbish, but then I make myself a target. 'Anybody who passes my door will always make sure to give it a good thud on their way by. It's quite alarming and I am scared, but I refuse to budge. 'I may be small and skinny but I won't take any crap. 'To make it even worse the whole place floods when we get plenty of rain because the drains are all blocked. 'We are living in a hellhole. It's lawless, the number of rats is immense, the streets are covered with them at night, and the parties that go on until 6am on a weekend are a nightmare. We are living in a hellhole. It's lawless, the number of rats is immense, the streets are covered with them at night, and the parties that go on until 6am on a weekend are a nightmare Kaz Gunn 'The noise here is awful. We get noise abatement people out to take measurements every so often but nothing is ever done about it. 'It's also mobility scooter central. I'd love to have a mobility scooter but can't get one for love nor money, but loads of people have them round here.' Kaz points out a woman zipping by holding a bag of shopping in one hand while gripping the handlebar and a phone pressed to her ear in her other. 'She's not disabled,' Kaz says. 'She's a mum-of-two who lives over there. 'You also get people coming to your door trying to sell you stuff. I've had somebody try and sell my cat to me before, then a fella started breeding kittens to get money so now you see more cats than ever. 'Another fella was trying to sell a wheelie bin which he'd obviously nicked from somebody else's house. 'As much as I'm terrified, I also have a lot of friends here who look out for me. I have CCTV to protect me.' 'Heartbreaking' 17 Though pushchairs are a regular feature outside the dishevelled terraced houses, Andrew tells us they are primarily used to transport waste Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Andrew says you can't have anything in your garden or it will get nicked Credit: Glen Minikin Bar the odd corner shop and a new play park for kids, there is not much to do in the PSPO catchment, with cafes and pubs long gone. Despite it being the school summer holidays, the streets are void of children playing. Though pushchairs are a regular feature outside the dishevelled terraced houses, Andrew tells us they are primarily used to transport waste. 'You see so many prams outside the houses - they look innocent enough but they're actually for the people to pile high with rubbish and take it to be dumped. It's crazy,' he says. 'There are a couple of fellas around here who have vans and operate as the local skip. They take loads of rubbish and dump it. 'We know who these people are yet nothing is done. 'Somebody set fire to some rubbish piled outside an old fella's home just last week and it killed all 90 of his pigeons. Somebody set fire to some rubbish piled outside an old fella's home just last week and it killed all 90 of his pigeons Andrew Wilshaw 'And you certainly can't have anything in your garden or it will get nicked. It's heartbreaking. 'Every so often there will be a power cut because of all the power being used to grow cannabis in some houses. "It's not fair because Eastwood was already a working class area and we've now become a dumping ground for people and rubbish. 'Sometimes I wonder why I keep doing this but then somebody in their 80s will come to me with concerns and fears, and I keep going.' He adds: 'It's not great to walk around here during the day but you'd be insane to come here at night. 'Each night there will be around 40 Slovakian Roma people drinking in the park. 'The council stupidly put around a dozen benches there so it makes the problem worse, and even the police don't come here. If they did there'd be hell. 'You get accosted at all hours by people asking, 'Do you want anything?' This can be drugs or sex.' 'Getting worse' 17 Some residents say there's an issue with groups of people drinking in the park in broad daylight Credit: Glen Minikin 17 The main streets covered by the PSPO are Fitwilliam Road, the Doncaster Road corridor, Eldon Road and the stretch up to the Mushroom roundabout Credit: Glen Minikin 17 Andrew says Eastwood was already a working class area and it's now become 'a dumping ground for people and rubbish' Credit: Glen Minikin 17 A squashed rat lies decaying in the middle of the road in Eastwood Credit: Glen Minikin Eastwood is a melting pot of ethnicities, with a big Asian population who migrated in the 70s, and a large Slovakian Roma population that has increased over the past decade. Thirty-five languages are spoken at Eastwood's St Ann's Primary school. One Roma mum-of-four, 36, who did not wish to be named, tells us: 'We are always to blame for all the rubbish but people come from outside in big vans and dump it. It is not us. 'I do not see so much wrong with all being out together in the street. We like to be together.' Another resident who did not wish to be named says: 'It is easy to put some of the blame onto the Roma families but the real problem is the landlords. 'The homeowners who moved out are now the landlords and they allow their tenants to do what they want and let them live in horrendous conditions.' You get accosted at all hours by people asking, 'Do you want anything?' This can be drugs or sex Andrew Wilshaw Private landlords in Eastwood have to comply with Selective Licensing, a scheme put in place from 2020 to 2025 to make sure landlords maintain certain conditions and are subject to council checks. It is waiting to be renewed. 'On paper Selective Licensing and PSPOs are wonderful, but if nobody is enforcing them then they're not going to work,' the man continued. 'Something should have been done about Eastwood a long time ago. Instead it has been left to rack and ruin and it's getting worse. 'Private landlords hand over their properties with not so much as a tenancy agreement. 'Everybody here is on benefits. Apparently many houses have their meters rigged up for gas and electricity and nobody bats an eyelid. Everybody here is on benefits. Apparently many houses have their meters rigged up for gas and electricity and nobody bats an eyelid Local resident 'The amount of nice cars around here when nobody is working is phenomenal. They're all mobility cars. 'Drinking in the street is a major problem, and people chucking their furniture into the street is standard. 'But if you ring the council, they say you need to ring the police, and they tell you to ring the council, and you go round in circles. 'It's intolerable. We shouldn't be living like this. These are 100-year-old terraces and the best thing for them would be to knock them all down.'
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
Record number of migrants claim asylum after arriving as skilled workers
A record number of migrants are claiming asylum despite arriving in the UK with legal visas, Telegraph analysis of Home Office data shows. Some 4,394 legal migrants who came to the UK in 2022 with visas to work or study had claimed asylum within three years of arriving. That was almost triple the number two years previously when just 1,518 migrants with visas had claimed asylum within three years of arriving, according to the Home Office figures. Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, is preparing to unveil new restrictions to prevent migrants using study and work visas as a backdoor into Britain's asylum system. Being granted asylum enables migrants to stay in the UK permanently whereas work and study visas are only temporary. Rejected asylum seekers can prolong their stay – sometimes indefinitely – by making repeated appeals to frustrate their deportation. According to the Home Office data, there were some 18,442 migrants living in the UK in 2024 who had switched from work, study or other visas and were either seeking asylum or had been granted refugee status. This was double the number a decade ago and up from a mere 151 in 2006. Of the 18,442, one in five were Pakistani, with 3,982 of them having gone down the asylum route despite arriving with a legal visa at some point. The vast majority – 3,603 – had arrived as students. This was followed by Afghans (2,097), Iranians (1,685), Libyans (1,367) and Bangladeshis (1,463). One of the cases involved a Pakistani man who first arrived on a student visa but was granted refugee status by an immigration tribunal and allowed to stay in the UK despite being convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017. The man, now aged 53 and given anonymity by the judge, arrived in the UK in 2006 as a student. He was initially granted leave to remain only until the end of that year, but he overstayed his visa and lived in the UK illegally for 11 years. Another Pakistani, Nadra Almas, first arrived in the UK in 2004 on a student visa, valid for five months. She was served with a removal notice in 2008 but won a 16-year legal battle to secure refugee status by claiming she was a Christian who would face persecution if deported back to Pakistan. Under Labour's plans to crack down on such abuses of the system, work and study visas will be rejected for individuals who fit the profile of someone who is judged likely to claim asylum and comes from a country with high rates of people switching to claim asylum. There will also be restrictions on asylum claims from individuals switching from work and study visas where conditions in their home country have not materially changed since their arrival. Ms Cooper is also planning to introduce measures to bar migrants who came to the UK on a work or study visa from claiming taxpayer-funded accommodation. Asylum seekers can claim accommodation and other financial support if they are destitute or likely to become destitute. However, work and study visa holders must prove they have sufficient funds to sustain themselves while in the UK. Officials will use the bank statements submitted by visa holders as part of their initial application when deciding whether to grant them asylum accommodation. This will make it significantly harder for asylum seekers to claim free accommodation if they came to the UK on a visa. A Home Office source said: 'We need to impose further restrictions to cut the number of people applying for asylum to extend their stay because their visa has run out.'
The Independent
5 hours ago
- The Independent
BBC faces criticism over delay in paying court-ordered damages to Gerry Adams
The BBC has been criticised for not yet having paid court-ordered damages to former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams. The corporation lost a major defamation case earlier this year after Mr Adams took them to court over a 2016 episode of its Spotlight programme and an accompanying online story. They contained an allegation that Mr Adams sanctioned the killing of former Sinn Fein official Denis Donaldson. Mr Adams denied any involvement. In May, a jury at the High Court in Dublin found in his favour and awarded him 100,000 euros (£84,000) after determining that was the meaning of words included in the programme and article. The BBC, which was found by the jury not to have acted in good faith nor in a fair and reasonable way, was also ordered to pay the former Sinn Fein leader's legal costs. Adam Smyth, director of BBC NI, expressed disappointment in the verdict and said the corporation believes it supplied extensive evidence to the court of the careful editorial process and journalistic diligence applied to the programme and accompanying online article. After the decision, the broadcaster's legal team was granted a stay in the payment of the full award as it took time to consider an appeal, subject to paying half the damages (50,000 euros or £42,000) and 250,000 euros (£210,000) towards solicitors' fees. In June, the BBC confirmed it would not pursue an appeal. However, it is understood that by August 1 the BBC had not paid the damages. Mr Adams previously indicated that he planned to donate what he receives to good causes. He specified that these would include for children in Gaza as well as groups in the Irish language sector and those who are homeless. A source close to Mr Adams told the PA news agency: 'The delay by the BBC is deplorable and it should move speedily towards discharging the order of the court.' A BBC spokesperson said: 'Total costs will be finalised and payable in due course.'
