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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National

Huddersfield grooming gang: Final four members of group of 20 jailed for 36 years

The final four men of the Huddersfield grooming gang that sexually abused vulnerable teenage girls have been jailed for a total of 36 years.

Leeds Crown Court heard how some of the three victims of Mohammed Akram, Niaz Ahmed, Mohammed Imran Ibrar and Asif Bashir were "plied with drink and drugs" and "used as commodities".

A judge told them their criminality "defies understanding".

The four men, part of a 20-strong gang, were convicted of committing offences against the girls between 2004 and 2010 as part of a cycle "of depravity and exploitation".

Criminal: Mohammed Akram (Kid) got 17 years for trafficking and rape (PA)

A jury convicted them of a total of 10 offences last month. The other 16 men have already been jailed for a total of more than 221 years.

The gang abused a total of 15 girls aged between 11 and 17 over a period spanning from 2004 to 2011.

On Thursday, Akram was jailed for 17 years, Ahmed five years, Ibrar three years and Bashir 11 years.

Sentenced: Niaz Ahmed (Shaq) was jailed for five years for sexual assault and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity (PA)

The gang's ringleader, Amere Singh Dhaliwal, 36, was given a life sentence with a minimum term of 18 years earlier this year after being convicted of 22 counts of rape involving 11 girls.

The Huddersfield grooming trials were allegedly put at risk by the antics of English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson, who flouted reporting restrictions designed to ensure the proceedings were fair.

Robinson, a convicted fraudster who has also served time for assault and drugs offences, claimed the activities of the gang were being covered up because the offenders were of Asian origin.

Jailed: Mohammed Imran Ibrar (Bully) was sentenced to three years for trafficking and ABH (PA)

Judge Simon Philips QC said the girls' victim impact statements made for "harrowing reading".

In a statement read to the court, one girl said she felt like she was "used goods" at the age of just 17 and only managed to escape the defendants when she became pregnant.

Another said she felt as though her life was at risk every time she left the house, adding: "It has basically ruined the rest of my life."

Criminal: Asif Bashir (Junior) was jailed for 11 years for rape and attempted rape (PA)

The judge told the four men: "The way that you treated these girls defies understanding, this abuse was vile and wicked."

Addressing Akram, who was convicted of two counts of trafficking for sexual exploitation and two of rape, the judge said he had shown a "complete disregard for the safety of the girls".

The court heard how, when he crashed his car into the wall of a mosque, he ran away and left two of the victims at the scene when they "clearly were in need of medical attention".

Ahmed was told he was prepared to abuse girls for his own "sexual gratification" as he was sentenced to five years in jail for sexual assault and inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

Ibrar was jailed for three years after being found guilty of trafficking for sexual exploitation and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Bashir was sentenced to 11 years after being convicted of rape and attempted rape.

Additional reporting by Press Association

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