13 men guilty of enforced prostitution and rape of vulnerable girls in Bristol
With second group of convictions, story can be told of the sexual abuse of teens – some in local authority care – often for money
By Steven Morris
Thursday, November 27, 2014
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Thirteen men, all of Somali origin, have been found guilty of the systematic sexual abuse of vulnerable schoolgirls and teenagers in Bristol.
The victims, some of whom were in local authority care, were groomed and passed around by their abusers – often for money – and assaulted in homes, parks and a hotel.
One of the girls was raped at the age of 13 on the same night by three different men, including a stranger, and thought her life would be in danger if she went to the police.
Another girl was sexually exploited after a local authority outside Bristol set her up alone in a flat at the age of 16 in a deprived inner-city neighbourhood although she had been described as having the emotional development of a three-year-old.
Within hours of arriving, she was spotted by drug dealers who set up a base in her new home and forced her to work as a prostitute. The abuse continued for months even after she told care workers about what was happening; the girl’s 14-year-old sister was subsequently raped during a visit.
A serious case review will look at the case and examine whether more should have been done to protect the girls. Ten girls have so far come forward but a dedicated major crime team continues to look into allegations of child exploitation in the force area and detectives fear there could be many other victims.
The case will once again focus attention on the scandal of groups of young men from minority ethnic communities who prey on vulnerable girls in inner-city communities – and the ability of agencies to spot such abuse.
Avon and Somerset police have said the case has similarities with large-scale child exploitation cases in places such as Oxford and Rochdale, where men of Asian heritage have been found guilty of abuse, but is keen to emphasise that the offences are relatively recent rather than historical.
Another difference is that this is the first time members of the Somali community have been found guilty of such abuse.
Six of the men, most of whom are in their early 20s, have already begun jail terms for a total of more than 75 years for offences including rape, paying a child for sex and arranging or facilitating payments for the sexual offences of a child. Another seven were this week convicted of offences including rape, causing or inciting child prostitution, sexual acts with children and trafficking.
The lifting of reporting restrictions on Thursday means that the story can be told for the first time.
Some of the offenders were members of a drugs gang, which sold heroin and cocaine in Bristol. Others were well-educated men with good prospects.
Detectives began investigating last year after the 13-year-old was raped by three men on the same night. They realised its wider significance only when they linked it to what was happening at the flat where the girl had been placed by social services.
Outside court, Ch Supt Julian Moss, head of Avon and Somerset police CID, praised the courage of the “very vulnerable” victims who gave evidence.
He added: “We will not rest while there is a risk of just one person being the victim of child sexual exploitation.”
There are nine active investigations into child sexual exploitation in Avon and Somerset. Moss said the force was “alive to the possibility” that the case could be seized on by far-right extremists and lead to hate crime.
Howard Phillips, head of complex casework in the south-west for the Crown Prosecution Service’, said some of the victims had been bought with drugs, drink even meals, trips to clubs and hair extensions. “Child sexual exploitation has a devastating impact on victims, their families and communities,” he added.
The case has caused huge concern in Bristol. Schools have been briefed about it and some teachers at inner-city schools have claimed that it is not uncommon for schoolgirls to boast about being paid for sex. It has sent shockwaves through the Somali community in Bristol.
Muna Abdi, chair of the Bristol Somali Forum, said the men had committed “evil acts” that the Muslim community in Bristol utterly condemned.
In a joint statement the forum and the Somali Resource Centre said the community was “proudly Bristolian British”
It continued: “The Somali community is law-abiding and values law. The shock of this case, like a thunderbolt, has struck at the heart of our proud and law abiding community in a way that is impossible to describe.”
The children’s charity Barnardo’s continues to care for some of the victims. Hugh Sherriffe, the director for Barnardo’s in the south-west and Midlands, said the case was the “tip of the iceberg”, arguing that such abuse was going on across the UK and more efforts needed to be made to stop it.
