Paedophile gang jailed: 95 years

The men terrorised the young girls over a six year period. Raising questions about why the police and social services didn't do more.

But the men were leading double lives. While abusing the girls, they were also pretending to be respectable members of the local community.

Reshma Rumsey spoke to Monowar Hussain a community leader from Oxford, Dr Sheikh Ramzy from the Oxford Islamic Centre and Riaz Ahmed from the Stanley Road Mosque.

The judge said they preyed on young girls, who no one would believe - and, in the end, they stole their souls. Today, seven men - guilty of child exploitation - have been sentenced to a total of 95 years.

The gang preyed on the most vulnerable girls - many in care homes. One as young as 11. They were groomed, raped - and sold as prostitutes.

They targeted their first victim in 2006. But, today at the Old Bailey, they were finally brought to justice.

A Serious Case Review is now underway as Andrew Pate now reports.

The Policing and Criminal Justice Minister Damian Green has responsed to the sentencing of seven men to 95 years in total for child abuse crimes.

"This horrific case of sexual exploitation shows we must strive harder to protect vulnerable children. Work is already underway to improve that protection, but I am determined to do more" he said.

"A new Home Office-led group will look at how to better identify those at risk and create a more victim-focused culture within the police, health and children’s services".

"But our prime responsibility is, of course, stopping abuse before it starts. The group will be working to target the organised crime networks that perpetrate the sort of systematic abuse we have seen in Oxford".

The Crown Prosecution Service has appealed to the victims of child abuse to come forward after they secured the successful prosecution of seven men in Oxford.

The NSPCC says that the authorities in Oxfordshire did not take action soon enough to stop the abuse of young vulenerable women in care.

Peter Wanless, the NSPCC CEO said: "“Whilst we recognise the authorities in Oxford did eventually take effective and coordinated action, this took far too long".

"There was a systematic failure to stop the gang earlier and protect the girls who raised the alarm on several occasions".

"The trial revealed that staff knew one of the girls was being sexually groomed yet no immediate action was taken".

" We need a fundamental shift in how the system treats vulnerable young people with all carers acting as good parents would when children are at risk".

“The positive development from all of this is that professionals are now treating the girls as victims and not delinquent children".

A judge at the Old Bailey has praised the victims of a child abuse ring in Oxford for having the "courage to give testimony".

Judge Peter Rook said the victims had come "knowing they would be accused of lying, knowing they would have to relive their ordeals, knowing that they had not been believed in the past".

Seven men who targetted vulnerable young women in Oxford and forced them to perform sexual acts have been sentenced to a total of 95 years in prison.