Seven men convicted of sexual exploitation of two teenage girls in Rochdale
The defendants preyed on the vulnerabilities of the victims to groom them as 'sex slaves' from the age of 13 on various dates in the Greater Manchester town between 2001 and 2006.
Both girls had 'deeply troubled home lives' and were given drugs, alcohol, cigarette, places to stay and people to be with, Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court heard.
Soon after they were expected to have sex 'whenever and wherever' the defendants and other men wanted in filthy flats, on rancid mattresses, in cars, car parks, alleyways and disused warehouses.
Jurors deliberated for three weeks before delivering their unanimous guilty verdicts on Friday.
Three of the abusers, Mohammed Zahid, 64, Mushtaq Ahmed, 67, and Kasir Bashir, 50, – all born in Pakistan – were stallholders on the town's indoor market.
Father-of-three Zahid – known as Boss Man – gave free underwear from his lingerie stall to both complainants and also money, alcohol and food in return for the expectation of regular sex with him and his friends.
In 2016, Zahid was jailed for five years in an earlier grooming gang case after he engaged in sexual activity in 2006 with a 15-year-old girl who he met when she visited his stall to buy tights for school.
Bashir did not attend the current trial as jurors were ordered not to speculate why but it can be revealed that he absconded while on bail before the trial got under way.
It can also be reported that co-defendants Mohammed Shahzad, 44, Naheem Akram, 48, and Nisar Hussain, 41, were remanded in custody with their bail revoked in January before the jury was sworn in.
Police received intelligence that the three Rochdale-born taxi drivers were planning to leave the UK and had already paid a deposit for their transport, the court heard.
All three denied the accusation but Judge Jonathan Seely said the court was not prepared to take a risk that they too would abscond.
A seventh defendant, Pakistani-born Roheez Khan, 39, also featured in another previous Rochdale grooming trial in 2013 when he was one of five men convicted of sexually exploiting a 'profoundly vulnerable' 15-year-old girl in 2008 and 2009.
Khan was jailed for six-and-a-half years for engaging in sexual activity with a child and witness intimidation.
Opening the prosecution case in January, Rossano Scamardella KC said Rochdale had been 'blighted' by child sexual exploitation and that one of the two complainants, Girl A, was abused by many other Asian men.
Girl A told the jury she could have been targeted by more than 200 offenders as her phone number was swapped but said 'there was that many it was hard to keep count'.
She told local children's services in 2004 that she was 'hanging around' with groups of older men, drinking and taking cannabis, the court heard.
Giving evidence, Girl B said she was living in a local children's home when she was preyed on by Zahid, Ahmed and Bashir.
She said she presumed various agencies knew what was going on as police regularly picked her up after social workers labelled her a 'prostitute'.
Girl B told the hearing she had since read her file held by Rochdale social services which she said stated she had been selling herself for sex from the age of 10.
Both complainants denied claims from defence barristers that they fabricated the allegations to secure compensation.
Zahid, of, Station Road, Crumpsall, was convicted of raping Girl A and Girl B, who did not know each other.
Jurors also found him guilty of offences of indecency with a child and procuring a child to have sex.
Ahmed, of Corona Avenue, Oldham, and Bashir, of Napier Street East, Oldham, were convicted of multiple counts of rape and indecency with a child, in relation to Girl B.
Shahzad, of Beswicke Royds Street, Rochdale, Akram, of Manley Road, Rochdale, Hussain, of New Field Close, Rochdale, and Khan, of Athole Street, Rochdale, were convicted of multiple counts of rape against Girl A.
Roheez Khan was found guilty of a single count of rape against Girl A.
During the trial the prosecution offered no evidence against an eight defendant, Arfan Khan, 41, of Rochdale, who was cleared of various sexual offences.
All the perpetrators were prosecuted as part of Operation Lytton, an ongoing investigation since 2015 by Greater Manchester Police into historical child sexual exploitation in Rochdale.
A total of 37 individuals have been charged so far, with five more trials scheduled to take place from September onwards.
Judge Seely thanked the jurors for 'giving up a very substantial chunk of their lives'.
He said: 'You have had to deal with a case, the facts of which undoubtedly can be described as harrowing, very harrowing, for anyone who has heard them.
'All of us have noticed the extraordinary care and dedication you have given to trying this case.'
The judge told the defendants they faced 'lengthy prison sentences' as he remanded them all in custody.
Sentencing of the men, including Bashir in his absence, will take place on a date to be fixed.
Following verdicts, Detective Superintendent Alan Clitherow, of Greater Manchester Police, said: 'There was information at the time that police and other agencies could, and should, have done something with and we didn't.
'The way those victims were dealt with at the time is indefensible and inexcusable.
'We have made comprehensive apologies for that. We're not perfect but we are very much improving now on how we manage these investigations.
'We have got a dedicated central team, we have got multi-agency teams that work out on districts. So, we are now light years away from where we were at that time.
'But the simple fact is that we did make mistakes. We didn't act on information we should have but we have learnt from that.'
Assistant Chief Constable Steph Parker said: 'I know that our past failings have meant there are people who doubt the police's commitment today to putting grooming gangs behind bars where they belong. Let me be clear – time is no barrier to justice, and we are actively working with dozens of survivors on numerous investigations to ensure no offender gets away with this. When you are ready, we will listen.
'Our dedicated child sexual exploitation major investigations team has almost 100 investigators working every day to listen to victims and to bring cases to court. Every town, city and borough in Greater Manchester has a dedicated multi-agency safeguarding team that shares information and investigates all reports to protect children from harm.
'We're light years ahead of where we were, and we are totally focused on listening to survivors and continuing to further improve on our best practices which are now well embedded.'
Liz Fell, specialist prosecutor for the CPS's organised child sexual abuse unit, said: 'This case has been incredibly complex and challenging, but thanks to the close collaboration with Greater Manchester Police, we were able to build a compelling case to present to the court. The jury saw through the defendants and delivered the justice these victims deserve.
'These convictions send a very clear message that the CPS, working alongside law enforcement colleagues, will relentlessly pursue justice for victims and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, whenever that abuse took place.'
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