Sexual predators gave girls drink and drugs at house parties before raping them
A trio of sexual predators who gave teenage girls alcohol and drugs at a series of house parties in Plymouth have been found guilty of rape.
The older men deliberately targeted four teenage girls, debilitating them with substances in order to sexually assault them.
The abuse came to light after another girl went to police after watching BBC drama Three Girls, which depicted the high-profile child sexual assault investigation in Rochdale.
She reported a series of parties in Plymouth in 2017 where girls had been given alcohol and money to buy drugs, before being groomed and sexually assaulted by the men present.
Operacion Garcia was launched by Devon and Cornwall Police in 2017 and four men were charged.
Following a five-week trial at Plymouth Crown Court, three of those men have now been convicted of rape while a fourth man was found not guilty of sexual assault.
Abalzaq Salih, 31, from Plymouth - convicted of two counts of rape of a female aged 15 or under
Saif Kahya, 32, from Liverpool - convicted of one count of rape of a female aged 16 or over
Anthony Anantharajah, 35, from London - convicted of one count of rape of a female aged 16 or over. He was found not guilty of engaging in non-penetrative sexual activity with a girl aged 15 or under.
They were remanded in custody and are due to be sentenced in September.
A fourth man, 45-year-old Moussa Ahmadou, from Plymouth, was found not guilty of sexual assault on a female.
Prosecutor Dan Pawson-Pounds said the defendants were in their 20s or 30s at the time and their victims were aged between 14 and 16, creating a “power imbalance”.
He said: “These events had one thing in common – they were designed by these defendants and others to exploit vulnerable young girls; to get them away from whatever family structures they had, give them money, drink and drugs, and then to sexually assault them when their defences were down.
“These girls voluntarily entered the world created for them by these men. A world of parties in houses or locations chosen by the men. A world where they were made to feel grown up and given things they wanted. But a world in which they could be abused.
“And abused in a way which these defendants hoped meant that the girls could never tell anyone in authority about. Whether through guilt for being there in the first place, fear, or an inability to remember what had happened to them as a result of the drink and drugs.”
Girls woke up as they were being raped
The court heard that in February 2017, Anantharajah targeted a 16-year-old girl.
She was intentially plied with alcohol and text friends saying she was with older men, felt vulnerable and wanted to leave.
The girl eventually fell asleep on Anantharajah’s bed but woke up to find him raping her.
She managed to get away from the house but was found crying uncontrollably and hyperventilating in the street by a member of the public who called 999. Anantharajah was arrested a few minutes later but flatly denied any sexual contact with the teenager.
Just over three months later, a number of girls were invited to a house party at Salih’s shared home and given drink and drugs.
Salih targeted the second victim, who was aged under 15, waiting until she fell asleep through intoxication before attacking her. She woke up petrified to find him raping her.
In December 2017, Salih attended a party at Kahya’s home where teenagers were again invited and given alcohol. Three of the girls slept on a makeshift bed on the lounge floor, two of them passed out intoxicated with the third victim taking care of them.
One of the girls, who was younger than 15, woke up to find Salih trying to pick up one of her friends and take her out of the room. When she confronted him he turned on her instead, forcing himself on her before raping her on the floor while her friends remained unaware.
The fourth victim, a 16-year-old girl, was at the same party and was raped by Kahya in his bedroom. As part of the police investigation she provided a witness statement in March 2021. In January 2022 she found the courage to admit she had been the victim of rape.
All the men initially denied having any sexual contact with any of the victims instead claiming the girls were all lying to police about what had happened.
Plymouth Commander, Temporary Chief Superintendent Scott Bradley, said: “I want to start by praising the bravery of the survivors in this case. Without their evidence and courage we would not have been able to achieve this outcome.
“Devon and Cornwall Police is committed to tackling violence against women and girls, and targeting those who seek to prey on the vulnerable. The guilty verdicts are a culmination of years of hard work by a committed and professional team of officers and staff.
“I am grateful for the collective partnership work across the city that has allowed us to support the survivors in this case and I hope to some degree that today’s outcome will start to bring about some closure on this traumatic journey for each of them.
“Our message to other survivors of sexual abuse is that we are here to listen, to work with you, to support you, and to achieve justice.”
Help and support
If anything in this article has impacted you, you can visit victimcare-dc.org to access support services and information. You can also call Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111 or Devon and Cornwall Police’s Victim Care Unit on 01392 475900
Advice and support can also be found at:
National Rape Crisis Helpline 0808 802 9999
Devon and Cornwall Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC) 0300 3034626
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