Four members of sex grooming gang facing deportation to Pakistan

Four men convicted of being part of a child sex grooming gang in Rochdale are facing deportation.

Shabir Ahmed, Adil Khan, Qari Abdul Rauf and Abdul Aziz are facing deportation to Pakistan after immigration judges rejected their appeal.

The men, who were convicted for offences in 2012, appealed against a move to strip them of their British citizenship.

But their claims were dismissed on all grounds by the Upper Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

The ruling paves the way for the men, all of Pakistani nationality who acquired British citizenship by naturalisation, to be removed from the UK.

The case centres on decisions by then home secretary Theresa May proposing to deprive the men of their British citizenship on the grounds that it would be "conducive to the public good".

Mr Justice McCloskey, handing down the judgement, said the cases were "of some notoriety" and described the crimes as "shocking, brutal and repulsive".

He dismissed five different grounds of appeal - including an argument advanced by three of the men that the Government had failed in a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of their children.

The ruling also dismissed a complaint of a "disproportionate interference" with the men's rights as EU citizens and rejected claims concerning human rights laws.

However, the legal battle to deport the men could continue for a length of time as the Home Office must complete further steps and the men can appeal at a later stage.

Ringleader Ahmed, who is serving 22 years for rape and other charges, remains in custody, while the other three men have been released on licence.

Khan, Rauf and Aziz were convicted of conspiracy and trafficking for sexual exploitation charges.

Aziz was not convicted of having sexual intercourse with a child.