Three convicted of sexually abusing school girl in Oxford

From the Oxford Mail and the BBC. This was a long case and the jury were out a long time, with the Christmas and New Year  holidays inbetween. 

A GANG of child abusers on trial for historical sex offences which took place across Oxford have been convicted.

During the major trial into child sexual exploitation, which began in October, prosecutors said that some of the men groomed their victim and repeatedly raped and ‘pimped’ her out for sex.

After a total of 28 hours and 25 minutes of deliberations jurors returned verdicts to 35 of the counts they faced yesterday afternoon with no decision forthcoming on the four remaining counts.

• Naim Khan, of no fixed address, was found guilty of eight counts of rape, seven counts of indecent assault and one count of supplying a Class B drug
• Mohammed Nazir, of Wood Farm Road, Oxford, was convicted of seven counts of rape, eight counts of indecent assault and one count of supplying a Class B drug
• Raheem Ahmed, of no fixed address, was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault and one count of supplying a Class B drug

Outlining the case Alan Gardner for the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The case is about sexual exploitation of young girls in Oxford between 1999 and 2001.

“The prosecutions case is […] that the sexual exploitation took the form of rape, sexual assaults, conspiracy to commit those offences, the supply of drugs in order to facilitate these offences, and kidnap and false imprisonment.  You will hear during the course of the trial three women […] who will say when they were in their early to mid-teens they were the victims of some of these offences at the hands of these defendants.”

Detailing the extent of the abuse Mr Gardner said the victims – none of whom can be named for legal reasons – were all ‘vulnerable.’ Speaking of one of the women – who was the subject of the large majority of the allegations – he said she was ‘treated as a sexual commodity for the use of older men.’ He said: “Naim Khan, the prosecution say, began to pimp her out to other Asian males, made her sexually available to other men in return for payment.”

That girl – now a woman – was aged between 14 and 15 – at the time of the offences.

That same victim endured several hours of cross examination in which her account was tested at court by defence barristers representing the accused men.

Paul Hinds, for Nazir, asked the woman if she was ‘prepared to lie’ in order to avoid prison, which she denied. He also asked her if there was a ‘link between the amount of trouble [she] was in’ and what she told officers. He put to her: “I suggest you are making allegations in order to improve your position.”

She replied that she had not.

After the guilty verdicts to the majority of the counts were returned yesterday presiding Judge Peter Ross thanked the jury for their dedication to the case. Once he had discharged them from the case he went on to exempt all 12 jurors from carrying out any further jury service for the rest of their lives.

Judge Peter Ross asked for further information about the guilty men and said they would be sentenced on a date to be set in February. A hearing will be held at the same court today to decide whether a re-trial will be sought on the four outstanding counts.