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The Rotherham sex grooming was a series of sexual offences against girls as young as twelve by five British-Pakistani men who were convicted and jailed in November 2010. The men fostered relationships with teenage girls and had sex with them in cars and parks in Rotherham. A investigation by The Times reported that the child sex exploitation was much more widespread and the Home Affairs Select Committee criticized the South Yorkshire Police force and Rotherham Council for their handling of the abuse.

Trial

The men were tried in Sheffield Crown Court and were told by the judge that, "the message must go out loud and clear that our society will not tolerate sexual predators preying on children." In addition to their sentences, all five were placed on the sex offenders register.

The Times investigation

In September 2012, a series of investigations by The Times based on confidential police and social services documents, stated that the abuse had been much more widespread than acknowledged. It said that there was systematic abuse of white girls by some Asian men (mostly of Pakistani origin) in Rotherham for which people were not being prosecuted.

The newspaper cited a 2010 report by the police intelligence bureau which discussed "a problem with networks of Asian offenders both locally and nationally" which was "particularly stressed in Sheffield and even more so in Rotherham, where there appears to be a significant problem with networks of Asian males exploiting young white females. It also referred to a document from the Rotherham Safeguarding Children Board that stated that the "crimes had 'cultural characteristics...which are locally sensitive in terms of diversity'".

The South Yorkshire Police denied these accusations saying that The Times was wrong, and that to suggest the police force was deliberately withholding information was "a gross distortion and unfair on the teams of dedicated specialists working to tackle the problem."

Reaction

The Rotherham MP, Denis MacShane, criticized the police force for concealing the extent of the abuse, saying "it is clear that the internal trafficking of barely pubescent girls is much more widespread and I regret that the police did not tell Yorkshire MPs about their inquiries."

Lord Ahmed called for mosque leaders in South Yorkshire to highlight the problem of sex exploitation. He said this issue was a "new phenomenon within the Asian community" and that "it's important that the community, rather than going silent... talk about it." Muhbeen Hussain, founder of Rotherham Muslim Youth group, said all communities denounced the exploitation and that "we need Muslim leaders to go out there and condemn this and make it clear it's wrong." The chairman of the Pakistan and Muslim Centre in Sheffield, Mohammed Ali said the South Yorkshire mosques, the imams and the committee members had discussed this situation that "needs to be tackled."

Rotherham council report

In November 2012, the Rotherham council identified 58 possible victims of sexual exploitation. The director of children and young people's services attributed the rise from 50 of last year to an increased public awareness. A national report by the Office of Children's Commissioner, also published in November, found that thousands of children were sexually abused by gangs in England each year.

Home Affairs Select Committee

In October 2012, the Home Affairs Select Committee criticized South Yorkshire's chief constable, David Compton, and one of its top officers, Philip Etheridge, for their handling of child sex abuse. The committee heard evidence of three members of a family that were connected with the abuse of 61 girls but were not convicted, and of a similarly unconvicted 22-year-old man who was found in a car with a 12-year-old girl with indecent images of her on his phone. David Compton said that "ethnic origin" was not a factor in deciding whether to charge suspects. The committee said that they were very concerned, as was the public.

In January 2013, the head of Rotherham council, Martin Kimber, was summoned in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee to explain the lack of arrests for sexual exploitation, despite South Yorkshire Police saying it was conducting several investigations and the local authority having identified 58 young girls at risk. MP Keith Vaz questioned why after the five Asian men were jailed in 2010, more was not being done: "In Lancashire there were 100 prosecutions the year before last, in South Yorkshire there were no prosecutions". The council apologised for its "systemic failure" that had "let down" the victims of child sexual exploitation.

See also

• Rochdale sex trafficking gang
• Derby sex gang
• Oxford sex gang
• Telford sex gang

References

1. ^ "Five Rotherham men jailed for child sex offences". BBC.
2. "Five guilty of grooming teenage girls for sex". Independent.
3. ^ "South Yorkshire Police deny hiding girls' sex abuse". BBC.
4. ^ "South Yorkshire Police 'must get a grip' on child abuse". BBC.
5. "MPs seek hidden files on Rotherham sex-grooming". The Times. 9 January 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
6. ^ "Rotherham council apologises to child grooming victims". BBC.
7. ^ "Police files reveal vast child protection scandal". The Times. Retrieved January 23, 2013.
8. ^ "Lord Ahmed calls on mosques 'to speak' about sex abuse". BBC.
9. ^ "Rotherham sex abuse: More girls at risk". BBC.

• Rape in England
• Crime in South Yorkshire
• Sex crimes in England
• Child sexual abuse
• Pedophilia
• Rotherham