Four men jailed in Telford sex abuse trial
Four men from Telford have been sent to prison for abusing a "helpless" young girl who was "passed around like a piece of meat," sold for sex and raped.
The victim told how she was forced to perform sex acts in a churchyard, raped above a shop on a filthy mattress, and violently abused when she tried to refuse their advances.
Five men went on trial at Birmingham Crown Court, leading to convictions for four of the defendants while another was cleared.
Sentencing the group to between four-and-a-half and eight years on Thursday, a judge said the men had abused a "helpless" victim, who had been groomed until she was no longer in effective control of her own life."
Addressing the ring-leader Mohammed Ali Sultan, Recorder of Birmingham, Judge Melbourne Inman QC, said: "The victim was clearly extremely frightened of you, and you exercised significant control over her."
The offences took place in the Telford sometime between 2001 and 2002. They started when the girl, now an adult, was just 13.
The victim said she was assaulted by other unidentified males, with the abuse continuing until she was in her mid-teens, the jury heard.
Jurors were told that the vulnerable victim was sold for sex, first by a man who had "befriended her" during a low point in her life.
The man who did takeaway deliveries at Perfect Pizza in the town, was not on trial alongside the other defendants, having been deported to Pakistan for "unrelated offences", the court heard.
Later, the victim came into contact with the first defendant, Ali Sultan, 33, formerly of Telford, whom she said also sold her for sex, raped and abused her.
The jury was told that he already had convictions in both 2012 and 2015 for "similar offences against young girls" - the last of which he was serving the remainder of a six year prison term for.
During the trial, jurors watched video-recorded interviews with the victim, in which she told detectives of enduring two years of "hell" and of repeatedly contemplating taking her own life as she was traded to different men for "months and months."
On Tuesday (December 17), Ali Sultan was unanimously convicted of rape and three counts of indecent assault.
Jailing "controlling" and abusive Ali Sultan for eight years, the judge said:
"When last at liberty, you clearly attacked a number of victims over a prolonged period.
"Now the full extent of your offending is apparent, you've shown no remorse in relation to the present allegations and no insight as far as I can see into the offending."
"You remain, clearly, a very dangerous man."
Imposing a two-year extended licence period, the judge added: "You will be eligible for release, after serving two thirds of your sentence, but won't be entitled to release until the Parole Board is satisfied you don't represent a danger of the public."
Co-defendant Mohammad Rizwan, 37, was also convicted of two counts of indecent assault and sent to prison for five-and-a-half years.
Shafiq Younas, 35, who was convicted of indecently assaulting the victim in a churchyard, was jailed for four-and-a-half years.
Amjad Hussain, 38, convicted of a single count of indecent assault was also jailed for four-and-a-half years.
All the men must sign the sex offenders register, and a sexual harm prevention order and restraining order were imposed on Ali Sultan.
A fifth man, Nazam Akhtar, 35, was cleared of an allegation he raped the girl in the back of a car.
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