NINE men who ran the Rochdale child sex abuse ring were eventually jailed for a string of offences in 2012. Greater Manchester Police (GMP) investigated Kabeer Hassan and another man, aged 59. "Even though I was kicking and screaming in the back [of the police van] saying 'he's hit me or he's raped me', I was always the one that got arrested. Assistant Chief Constable Dawn Copley said that, at the time of the earlier investigation, "there was a strong target driven focus, predominantly on serious acquisitive crime. On 9 May 2012, the Rochdale grooming trial reached its conclusion. Of the three not convicted, one was cleared of all charges, the jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case of the second, and the third was not present at the trial after fleeing to Pakistan whilst on bail. UK News US News World News Weird News Real Life More Hopeful TeamDogs In Your Area. Assistant Chief Constable Steve Heywood said that about 550 officers were working on Operation Doublet in May 2013. It is worth remembering though that none of it would be happening without a frightened, angry girl who had been raped venting her rage in a takeaway in Heywood and then being courageous enough to speak about what had happened. The women, who cannot be named for. The woman now wants her story to be told to help people spot the signs of grooming, which she describes as "a common thing that not enough people know about". He said there was no doubt she was a victim of horrendous abuse and exploitation and he accepted that the police response "could and should have been better". That nightmare should have ended with the arrest and trial of the perpetrators, but instead the police, Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and even social services treated her not as a victim but as a perpetrator. Not just once - but repeatedly - by a gang of men who would ply her with vodka and threaten her with violence unless she succumbed to horrific abuse. Greater Manchester Police has been accused of 'blanking' three Rochdale grooming victims who have been trying to progress legal action against the force for over 18 months. The police were called. And then, in July 2009, an experienced CPS lawyer ruled the victim was not credible and decided that the two men who raped her should be released without charge. A chance to stop the gang was missed in 2008 and both the police and the CPS were forced to apologise for their failings. "At first I thought it was great because nothing sexual had happened, I thought I could just get all of this stuff for free.". But because of an obligation to disclose criminal convictions, she has been prevented from pursuing her chosen career. I asked Amber what gave her the strength to give evidence to the police, after what she had gone through. It formed a large part of the police investigation that became known as Operation Span. Maggie spent six months speaking to the victims from Rochdale and persuaded them to give evidence. [55], Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 10:03, UCL Jill Dando Institute of Security and Crime Science, Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, List of sexual abuses perpetrated by groups, Post-assault treatment of sexual assault victims, "Rochdale grooming trial: gang convicted for sex trafficking", "Rochdale child sex ring case: respected men who preyed on the vulnerable", "Rochdale grooming trial: Nine found guilty of child sex charges", "Rochdale grooming trial: how the case unfolded", "Rochdale child sex ring: did political correctness delay justice? ', "We haven't sorted out a solution to these really complex issues about young people.". But before what turned out to be the final interview, Oliver says she started to notice a change in tone from senior officers, and felt they were now deliberately trying to push this victim away. Police began to investigate child grooming in Rochdale almost by accident. Three Girls review a brave new focus on the Rochdale child sexual abuse scandal, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. I didnt want other people to feel how I felt. Her courage and Olivers support resulted in a database of abusers whom she identified by names, car registrations, telephone numbers and addresses. In October 2010 the M.E.N. The networks of men come from different backgrounds: in the North and Midlands many have been British Asians; in Devon it was white men; in Bath and Bristol, Afro-Caribbeans; in London, all ethnic mixes, whites, Iraqis, Kurds, Afghans, Somalis". Adil Khan was sentenced to eight years for the same offences. She has forced the police and social services to apologise to her for their behaviour. [32], Hilary Willmer, representing a Leeds-based support group for parents of sexually exploited girls, the Coalition for the Removal of Pimping (Crop), was quoted as saying "The vast majority [of] perpetrators are Pakistani Asians",[35] with sources inside Crop claiming a percentage as high as 80 per cent although, The Independent said that "Kurdish, Romanian and Albanian gangs were also involved". File on 4 - Groomed, abused and put in prison: Rochdale's untold story will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Tuesday 14 July at 20:00 BST and repeated on Sunday 19 July at 17:00 BST. But after a while it had been going on for so long and with so many different men, I didn't feel anything towards it anymore. But wheres the evidence? "[54], One of the seven officers retired without any sanctions being taken, even though his misconduct was found to have warranted disciplinary action. [8], Some gang members told the court the girls were willing participants and happy having sex with the men. Critics say the delays meant more girls were left to be abused while the criminal justice system slowly changed its course. "Most child sexual abuse gangs made up of white men, Home Office report says", "A new Home Office report admits grooming gangs are not a 'Muslim problem', "Rochdale sex-grooming gangs able to flourish due to police errors says report", Greater Manchester Police, Report into Rochdale CSE investigation, 13 March 2015, "No officers to be charged over Rochdale child abuse failure, say police", The Rochdale Borough Safeguarding Children Board, Review of Multi-Agency Responses to the Sexual Exploitation of Children, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rochdale_child_sex_abuse_ring&oldid=1140279348, This page was last edited on 19 February 2023, at 10:03. There was a complete lack of appreciation of the world in which some of the girls lived - when in fact that should have framed every conversation . Read about our approach to external linking. They were overlooked, they were discriminated against.. It's now 10 years since the start of the police investigation that led to the Rochdale grooming trial. [53], On 13 March 2015, Greater Manchester Police apologised for its failure to investigate child sexual exploitation allegations more thoroughly between 2008 and 2010. [34], A report by The Times on 5 January 2011, related to convictions for child sex grooming in the North and Midlands. It was not until summer 2011 that Nazir Afzal, the new regional head of the CPS, reversed the decision not to prosecute. When police were called to a report of a 15-year-old girl smashing up the Balti House takeaway in Heywood, they had no idea that the crime they had. A Serious Case Review published in 2013 concluded that the authorities 'struggled to empathise' with the girls, partly because they were from poor backgrounds, giving them a 'skewed picture of their behaviour'. [32] Ella Cockbain and Helen Brayley pointed out, "There is no criminal offence of 'on-street grooming' and as a result it is very difficult to measure the extent of the crime based on court statistics. "Any criminal convictions that [Daisy] has, have been as a direct consequence of the abuse and exploitation. [5], In March 2015, Greater Manchester Police apologised for its failure to investigate the child sexual exploitation allegations more thoroughly between 2008 and 2010. The ID parades were particularly gruelling for Amber, who did 12 in one day alone, correctly identifying 10 of her abusers. The abuse continued for months, until one evening she was arrested by police for smashing the counter at a takeaway where some of the men met the girls. The government would not comment on the Rochdale case but said it had deported more than 51,000 foreign national offenders since 2010. After a while, the girl was being driven to different houses or flats where there would be other men waiting. "At first I felt really bad, dirty and ashamed. Finally, after a gruelling 18 months and several hearings, the judge threw the case out. To date, the CPS has not accepted any failure on its part and instead continues to herald this case as the first successful prosecution of a grooming gang. I trusted police that I would be helped this time. When a local teenager was caught smashing up a glass chiller at the Balti House takeaway in Heywood in August 2008, police dismissed it as a simple act of vandalism. [13], As a result of the CPS dropping the case, the police halted their investigation, which was resumed when a second girl made complaints of a similar nature in December 2009. Mohammed Amin received a five-year sentence for sexual assault and conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with children. As a responsible publication the M.E.Ns editors respected this request from senior detectives at GMP and eventually our story was published a few months later. Her mother was not allowed to be with her during the interview, and there was no mention of an appropriate adult. A second serious case review looked at a separate case involving a seventh girl. Nazir Afzal, chief prosecutor in the North West - who overturned the original CPS decision not to prosecute over allegations of abuse in 2009 - said: "I absolutely accept that things didn't go well for us and other agencies. Under the direct supervision of the Registered Nurse the GI Technician provides care to all patients, including pediatrics, adults and geriatrics by assisting the team during GI procedures. He said: "It creates a culture of hopelessness, where the police officers think 'what's the point? In 2014 an inquiry led by MP Ann Coffey suggested sexual exploitation of children had become normal on some streets and estates in Greater Manchester. [21], Following the break up of the first sex ring in May 2012, the police made arrests in relation to another child sexual exploitation ring in Rochdale. The investigation into the sexual abuse of the girl had been reopened following the exposure of police failings. There were fears that press involvement would frighten the girls away. In May 2012, nine men from Rochdale were convicted and jailed for grooming girls with alcohol, drugs and gifts before forcing them to have sex with multiple men. Harriet Wistrich, director of the Centre for Women's Justice, is supporting Daisy in a civil action against Greater Manchester Police and the Crown Prosecution Service. The convictions she received as a teen continue to hold her back to this day. When police arrived, she says they did not believe her version of events. One night in 2006, when she was just 14, a man became aggressive after she refused to have sex with him. Last May. And Ive done nothing wrong I was a victim of these men at the age of 14. Id been used. Ten months after her case had been dropped, police decided to revisit the case after more complaints emerged. ", Wigan driver waits to find out if he will be spared a road ban after driving at almost 100mph on the motorway, Police issue appeal to trace missing girl from Stockport, Urgent police appeal to locate missing teenage girl not seen for over 24 hours, Constance Marten's baby found in Brighton woodland Met Police say, Bolton Wanderers player Kyle Dempsey faces possible jail term - court, Constance Marten and Mark Gordon: Body found in search for missing baby, Human error to blame for train crash - Greek PM, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. While GMP has finally settled the claim, which includes the personal apology from the chief constable, the DPP has so far resisted. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Harry and Meghan told to 'vacate' Frogmore Cottage, Fungus case forces Jack Daniels to halt construction, Rare Jurassic-era bug found at Arkansas Walmart, Ed Sheeran says wife developed tumour in pregnancy, China and Belarus call for peace in Ukraine, Dozens of girls treated after new Iran poisonings, Havana Syndrome unlikely to have hostile cause - US, Man survives 31 days in jungle by eating worms. The period during the buildup to the trial of the men accused of being part of the grooming gang, was dark for Amber. Ive got a box in the back of my head, and I just put it all in there and its locked away.. Nine men from Rochdale and Oldham were sentenced for up to 19 years in prison in May 2012 after being convicted of offences including rape. [I] cant remember exactly what they said, but it was something along the lines of being a madam, she recalled. Because she was not involved in the trial, and therefore did not give evidence, she had no opportunity to defend herself. She was being shared around paedophiles across the north of England. I think it's wrong that she be held back in this way.". Now they werent prepared to do that. [17] Abdul Aziz, a married father of three, took over from Shabir Ahmed as the main trafficker and was paid by various men to supply underage girls for sex. The exposure of the grooming, sexual assault and trafficking of young girls in Rochdale was made public in 2012. Abdul Aziz, 51, Adil Khan, 51, and Qari Rauf, 52,. She still has a scar on her arm and as far as we know, the man who abused her was never investigated. She was vilified and nicknamed in the press as the Honey Monster. Five years later she won an apology and compensation from social services. Read about our approach to external linking. The probe began after a local teenager was arrested for smashing up a cabinet at the Balti . [35] "The citations are correct but they have been taken out of context," Cockbain told The Independent; "Nor do they acknowledge the small sample size of the original research, which focused on just two large cases." A June 2008 report identified 50 children in the town at risk of sexual exploitation. [48][49], A further investigation was carried out by the British government in December 2020, when the Home Office published their findings, showing that the majority of child sexual exploitation gangs were, in fact, composed of white men and not British Pakistani men.[50][51]. Why is it me that suffers still?". The three-part series tells the story of the victims of an infamous child grooming and sex trafficking scandal in Rochdale, and continues on Wednesday night. As a result of police failures to respond to evidence, the men who had groomed the three children were able to continue . "He then was saying all the things he had bought for me, and he wanted something back for it. The review recommended the Greater Manchester Police establish a monitoring system and commit to maintaining a child sexual exploitation team. During that period, Amber by now pregnant and living in a one-room flat continued to be targeted by the grooming gangs. The amounts listed are the base pay range; additional compensation may be available for this role, such as shift differentials, standby/on-call, overtime, premiums, extra shift incentives, or bonus opportunities. This reluctance was because shed been in this position before. In relation to historical failures, he apologised to Daisy. "It's not an excuse that's the reality of where we are. The men led the girls to believe they were in relationships with some of them, and it was normal to have sex. [14] The CPS's original decision was overturned in 2011 when a new chief prosecutor for the region, Nazir Afzal, a first generation British-Pakistani,[15] was appointed. The abuse then continued, with a number of men who she had not seen before joining in. Her complaint was not taken seriously and she carried on being abused by the gang until December 2008 when she fell pregnant and moved away. [17], Victims were physically assaulted and raped by as many as five men at a time,[1] or obliged to have sex with "several men in a day, several times a week". VideoAt the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, How fake copyright complaints are muzzling journalists, How 10% of Nigerian registered voters delivered victory, Sake brewers toast big rise in global sales, The Indian-American CEO who wants to be US president, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, Exploring the rigging claims in Nigeria's elections, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip. The uncomfortable truth would eventually come out despite the botched original police investigation which concluded the girl, who would later become the prosecutions star witness, was not credible. The trial at Liverpool Crown Court in 2012 heard five girls - aged between 13 and 15 - were given alcohol, food and money in return for sex but there were times when violence was used. Daisy had ambitions to become a social worker, to use her painful past to help others in the future. "We have got a number of girls in Rochdale that we believe are being abused and many of them will not talk to us and, even if they did, will not tell us about what is happening and certainly don't want to make a complaint because that means they go into the criminal justice system.". She says she was never informed by police either that she was no longer being treated as a victim, or that none of those she alleged to be her abusers was to be prosecuted for her abuse. There was a "shocking" inability to protect seven vulnerable girls from sexual exploitation, a report into the Rochdale grooming case has said. She told me: It wasnt like a forced thing. After the court case, social services started to pursue Amber, with the aim of having her children removed. Attempts by Rochdale Crisis Intervention Team co-ordinator for the NHS, Sara Rowbotham, to alert police and authorities to "patterns of sexual abuse" were ignored. Must demonstrate independence and competence in the duties on a variety of procedures. Address: CA Torrance 4101 Torrance Blvd. Maggie Oliver was again left fuming when one of the girls she had talked round - a victim of abuse - was placed in the indictment that went before the jury. But once the CPS advised the GMP that she was no longer seen as a suspect, she was persuaded by Oliver to begin a series of video interviews and ID parades. "I wouldn't go out of the house for nine months on my own without my mum or dad, because I was frightened," she said. Man United beat West Ham United in the FA Cup fifth round and here are how the players rated at Old Trafford. The alleged offences that took place in Rochdale between 2005 and 2013 included rape, conspiracy to rape, inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, sexual activity with a child, and sexual assault. A senior police officer has joined calls for a review on criminal records of child exploitation victims. [7] Actress Lesley Sharp played the police detective Margaret Oliver in the series. "[40], Hindu and Sikh groups have objected to media use of the "Asian" description saying that the culprits were "almost always of Pakistani origin" and "Muslim". It is committed by abusers from all walks of life, ethnicities, cultures and classes and it robs children of their childhoods and tears families apart. have fuelled fight-wing groups opposing multiculturalism and immigration. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. She later went on to positively identify a number of offenders, which enabled charges to be brought against them all. Amber had, under pressure from the abusers, taken some of her friends to the takeaway where the ringleaders operated from. [2], The victims, vulnerable teenagers from deprived, dysfunctional backgrounds, were targeted in "honeypot locations" where young people congregated, such as takeaway food shops. Cockbain and Brayley expressed concern that "findings were being overextended from a small, geographically concentrated sample to characterise an entire crime type". Officers on the Rochdale division were under pressure at the time to hit volume crime targets like bringing down the number of burglaries and were overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the grooming problem they had uncovered. It was absolute disrespect that vulnerable young people did not have a voice. Instead of being seen as a victim, Daisy was arrested and prosecuted for offences - many directly linked to the abuse she was suffering. A key member of the team was Detective Constable Maggie Oliver whose task was to convince the victims to speak to the police. May stated the revocations were "conducive to the public good". "[32] Further research has been pursued since late 2011 by the Office of the Children's Commissioner. Nazir Afzal, the newly-appointed chief crown prosecutor for the north west, reversed the decision not to prosecute the two who had been arrested and eventually authorised the charging of ten men in June 2011. "I'm nearly 30 years old, this started when I was 12," she says. Men alleged to be part of a child-grooming ring in Rochdale were never brought to justice because the evidence of teenage victims was not pursued, according a former police officer. In some cases those girls were raped, callously, viciously and violently. Three Girls: Maggie Oliver says known paedophiles are still abusing girls in Rochdale and authorities are 'more interested in covering up mistakes', according to one officer who was involved. He said the investigation was looking at cases in Rochdale dating back to 2003. "[2][11] Shabir Ahmed's threatening behaviour and calling Judge Gerald Clifton a "racist bastard" resulted in him being banned from the court for the sentencing hearing. One victim, a 15-year-old known as the Honey Monster, acted as a recruiter, procuring girls as young as 13 for the gang. VideoAt the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, How fake copyright complaints are muzzling journalists, How 10% of Nigerian registered voters delivered victory, Sake brewers toast big rise in global sales, The Indian-American CEO who wants to be US president, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, Exploring the rigging claims in Nigeria's elections, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip. Exploitation team believe they were in relationships with some of them, and Qari Rauf 52! Police detective Margaret Oliver in the trial of the children 's Commissioner its conclusion three children were able to.... Were particularly gruelling for Amber, with the men led the girls away the! The convictions she received as a direct consequence of the abuse and exploitation was made public 2012... Not until summer 2011 that Nazir Afzal, the judge threw the case after more emerged... 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