Further prosecutions have been made against Rotherham child abusers

A further seven men appeared at Sheffield Crown Court earlier this month, each convicted of child sexual abuse perpetrated between 2003 and 2008. The men in question were found guilty of sexual offences against two girls, aged 11 and 15. 

It is believed the abuse involved meeting the girls and providing them with gifts of money, alcohol, cigarettes or drugs, before forcing them to engage in sexual activity. 

However, these two girls were far from alone in their experiences. These convictions are just the latest secured against gangs of abusers and sex traffickers following the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal and subsequent police investigation, known as Operation Stovewood. Gangs in the Rotherham area are believed to have sexually exploited at least 1,400 girls between 1997 and 2013. 

Girls who fell victim to abuse were often known to be vulnerable, and many were under the care of Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council. The Jay Report, published in August 2014, found that the local authority often turned a blind eye to girls who were “raped by multiple perpetrators, abducted, trafficked to other cities in England, beaten and intimidated”. Evidence suggests this intimidation often took the forms of threats and acts of physical violence in an effort to silence victims’ testimonies.

Jordans Solicitors believes the courage of the many women and girls coming forward to acknowledge the abuse they suffered is admirable. We, therefore, wish to echo the words of Stuart Cobb, senior investigating officer at the National Crime Agency (NCA):

“What happened to them can never be undone, but I hope the sentences handed down here will at least give them a sense that their abusers have been held to account and justice has been done.

We and our partners will continue to do all we can to support them going forward.”