Men jailed for 55 years in crackdown on exploitation

Ashafaq Yousaf

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FIVE men have been jailed for more than 55 years as part of an investigation to tackle child sexual exploitation in Rochdale.

The convictions relate to offences committed between 2004 and 2008 against three victims who were aged between 14 and 16 at the time of the abuse.

Joshim Miah, 32, of Yorkshire Street, Rochdale, was found guilty of one count of rape and sentenced to seven years in prison.

Ittefaq Yousaf, 26, of Stanley Street, Rochdale, was found guilty of one count of sexual assault, one count of causing/inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and possession of indecent images. He was sentenced to 20 months.

Mohammed Sadeer, 28, of Brimrod Lane, Rochdale, was found guilty of one count of attempted rape and jailed for 12 years.

Mohammed Miah, 41, of HMP Moorland, Doncaster, was found guilty of one count of rape and sentenced to 16 years.

Ashafaq Yousaf, 31, of Stanley Street, Rochdale, was found guilty of four counts of rape and jailed for 19 years.

They were all convicted after trial and sentenced at Minshull Street Crown Court on Friday.

DCI Jamie Daniels, senior investigating officer for Operation Doublet, said: "Operation Doublet was launched following the 2011 investigation into child sexual exploitation in Rochdale and we identified cases where teenage girls had been sexually exploited by older men.

Convictions

"This was an extremely complex case and I want to thank the victims for the immense bravery they have shown; we could not have arrived at this point without their courage and support.

"There has been a strong partnership approach taken here, ranging from the Crown Prosecution Service, the Crisis Intervention Team, right through to Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. This has been of the utmost importance and the police team have dedicated themselves and have been relentless in achieving the very best outcomes via the Criminal Justice System and it's important to me that I commend the work of the officers for this particular trial and the wider Operation Doublet team that they are part of in every regard.

"CSE is more than a criminal issue; it is a social problem that we are working closely with our partners to tackle on many levels. Criminal investigations and convictions allow us to remove the offender but there is a huge amount of work behind the scenes.

"Tackling the sexual exploitation of children and young people is an absolute priority for Greater Manchester Police. It is crucial that we work together to identify individuals who prey on vulnerable children and empower young people to speak up. Ultimately, these outcomes belong to the victims, who have suffered truly awful ordeals and I cannot speak highly enough of the courage and bravery shown in coming forward."