Telford grooming ring: Four men jailed for sexually abusing vulnerable girl who was ‘passed around like piece of meat’

‘Helpless’ victim groomed until she lost control of her own life, judge says

Update - 24.12.20: The conviction of Shafiq Younas, for indecent assault, was quashed by the Court of Appeal on July 30, 2020.

Four men from Telford have been jailed for between four-and-a-half and eight years at for sexually abusing a vulnerable young girl who was “passed around like a piece of meat”.

The men “denied what they did to this child, forcing her to relive the awful events of those years at this trial”, prosecutors said after the group was convicted earlier this week.

Birmingham Crown Court previously heard how the victim was forced to perform sex acts in a churchyard, raped above a shop on a filthy mattress, and violently abused when she tried to refuse the men’s advances.

It was said to have happened around Telford, in the west Midlands, between 2000 and 2003, beginning when the victim was just 13.

Five men were tried and four were convicted. Passing sentence on Thursday, Judge Melbourne Inman QC said the girl had been “helpless” and was groomed until she lost control of her own life.

Judge Inman told Mohammed Ali Sultan, the group’s ringleader, that the teen was “clearly extremely frightened” of him as he exerted “significant” control over her. The 33-year-old was a remorseless and “very dangerous man” who showed no insight into his crimes, the judge added.

The victim had been “passed around like a piece of meat for the sexual gratification of several young men”, prosecutor Michelle Heeley QC previously told the court.

Detective Inspector Rob Rondel, of West Mercia Police, said on Thursday after the men were sentenced: ”This investigation was part of Operation Vapour, which continues today.

“We encourage victims of child sexual exploitation to come forward, engage with police and find support with our partner agencies.”

Mr Rondel praised the victim for her “real courage and determination” in seeing the case through.

Ali Sultan, formerly of Telford, was convicted of rape and three counts of indecent assault on Tuesday and has now been jailed for eight years. He is also subject to a sexual harm prevention order and a restraining order.

Co-defendant Mohammad Rizwan, 37, of Mafeking Road, Telford, was convicted of two counts of indecent assault and sentenced to five and a half years behind bars.

On Wednesday, the jury also found their co-accused Shafiq Younas, 35, of Regent Street, Wellington, guilty of indecently assault. He was handed a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence on Thursday.

Amjad Hussain, 38, of Acacia Drive, Leegomery – convicted of a single count of indecent assault on Tuesday – was cleared of another similar offence on Wednesday. He was also sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

All four must sign the sex offenders register.

Nazam Akhtar, 35, of Victoria Avenue, Wellington, was found not guilty of raping the girl in the back of a car.

Additional reporting by Press Association