Seven men have been convicted of rape in the UK’s latest grooming trial, following disturbing testimony that two young girl victims were subjected to horrific sexual abuse.
Jurors in Manchester, northwest England, deliberated for three weeks before finding the men, all of South Asian descent, guilty.
The convicted individuals, identified as Mohammed Zahid (64), Mushtaq Ahmed (67), Kasir Bashir (50), Mohammed Shahzad (44), Naheem Akram (48), Roheez Khan (39), and Nisar Hussain (41), face “lengthy prison sentences,” according to Judge Jonathan Seely. All have been remanded in custody, except Bashir, who absconded before the trial commenced.
These convictions stem from Operation Lytton, an investigation launched by Greater Manchester Police in 2015 into historical child sexual exploitation in Rochdale.
UK grooming gang members guilty of raping 13-year-old girls.
Credit: Brand X Pictures
The issue of grooming gangs, particularly those involving men of mostly South Asian origin abusing predominantly white working-class girls, has garnered significant attention, becoming a rallying cry for far-right figures and political parties like the Conservatives and Reform UK. It also drew international scrutiny earlier this year when Elon Musk criticised the UK government’s stance on calls for a national inquiry via his X platform.
Prosecutor Rossano Scamardella detailed the years of abuse, stating that the men exploited the two girls from the age of 13, between 2001 and 2006.
He described how the victims were “often forced to have oral sex and vaginal sex with multiple men on the same day, in filthy flats and on rancid mattresses,” and on other occasions, “in cars, car parks, alleyways, or disused warehouses.”
“Wherever and whenever these men wanted it.” Scamardella tragically concluded that they were “children passed around for sex; abused, degraded, and then discarded,” also noting that one victim was exploited by other unnamed men.
Following the verdicts, Detective Superintendent Alan Clitherow of Greater Manchester Police issued an apology for the authorities’ past inaction. “There was information at the time that police and other agencies could, and should, have done something with, and we didn’t,” he admitted.
He deemed the previous handling of the victims “indefensible and inexcusable,” confirming that comprehensive apologies have been made.
