Rochdale grooming gang charged with nearly 80 alleged sex offences against two teenage girls

And another. This was a Telegraph headline for an hour – then it slipped down, below a story about Rishi Sunak’s socks.  The Manchester Evening News had it as a lead story from this morning. 

Ten men have been accused of orchestrating “a large-scale” grooming operation in Rochdale with 74 alleged sexual offences against two teenage girls.

The offences, said to have been carried out between 2003 and 2008, include rape, sexual activity with an underage girl and trafficking.

Harriet Lavin, prosecuting, described the gang’s alleged offences as a “high-profile, large-scale grooming operation” which had led to 91 individuals being investigated.

Eight out of the ten men appeared on Friday at Manchester and Salford magistrates’ court.

• Irfan Qurban, 43, of Innings Way, Rochdale, has been charged with two counts of sexual activity with a girl.
• Amjad Mahmood, 51, of Channing Street, Rochdale, has been charged with seven counts of rape of underage girl, two counts of gross indecency with an underage girl, two counts of indecent assault on an underage girl, two counts of trafficking persons within the United Kingdom for sexual exploitation, five counts of sexual activity with an underage girl, two counts of assault of an underage girl by penetration, two counts of causing/ inciting an underage girl to engage in sexual activity.
• Gulnawaz Khan, 40, of North Street, Rochdale, has been charged with inciting an underage girl to commit an act of Gross Indecency, two counts of rape of an underage girl, two counts of sexual activity with an underage girl.
• Naveed Anwar, 38, of Colley Street, Rochdale, has been charged with three counts of sexual activity with an underage girl.
• Arshad Mohammed, 53, previously of the Milkstone and Deelish ward of Rochdale, has been charged with meeting an underage girl following sexual grooming, two counts of rape of an underage girl, sexual activity with an underage girl, assault of an underage girl by penetration, rape of a woman.
• Sheraz Hussain, 39, of Cook Street, Rochdale, has been charge with six counts of rape of an underage girl and six counts of sexual activity with an underage girl.
• Mohammed Zahed, 36, of Midhurst Street, Rochdale, has been charged with six counts of sexual activity with an underage girl.
• Khalid Mahmood, 39, of Wardle Edge, Rochdale, has been charged with rape of a woman and rape of an underage girl.
• Mukhtar Hussain, 39, of Royal Street, Rochdale, has been charged with two counts of gross indecency with an underage girl, six counts of rape of an underage girl, five counts of sexual activity with an underage girl and unlawful sexual intercourse with an underage girl.
• Shakeel Ahmed, 40, of Spinners Green, Rochdale, has been charged with three counts of rape of an underage girl and sexual activity with an underage girl.

The court heard that Amjad Mahmood and Sheraz Hussain were unable to attend court for medical reasons.

Deputy district judge Mary Dowrick sent the case to Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court where the men are next due to appear on June 23.

All of the defendants, aside from Arshad Mohammed, were granted conditional bail. Which makes me wonder how long it will be before a substantive trial takes place. There is nothing to work out whether this gang is connected to the trial which started then stopped at CC Minshull Street last week. They are all ‘connected’ but some are more obviously the exact same gang.