Rotherham Grooming Gang Ringleader Locked Up Again for Raping 13-Year-Old
The vile ringleader of a Rotherham grooming gang has been sentenced to 12 more years behind bars after raping a 13-year-old girl in a horrific abuse spree.
Predator Plied Girl With Drugs and Alcohol Before Attacks
Mohammed Imran Ali Akhtar, 42, targeted the vulnerable teen on the streets of Rotherham. He supplied her with drugs and alcohol, then drove her to various locations to carry out sickening assaults. Akhtar pleaded guilty to two counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault.
The latest 12-year sentence will run concurrently with a previous 23-year jail term handed down in 2018 for multiple sex offences against young girls.
Victim Summons Courage After Seeing News of Convictions
The latest victim came forward only after watching news reports of Akhtar’s earlier convictions. At Sheffield Crown Court, she was described as a “very vulnerable girl living in difficult circumstances.”
Akhtar groomed her after spotting her in Rotherham town centre. He abused her four to five times a week for a year. When she resisted, he threatened to abandon her in isolated places. On one occasion, he kicked her out of his car in the dead of night, forcing her to walk for hours.
Judge Praises Victim’s Bravery, Details Horrifying Abuse
“I commend the victim’s bravery in coming forward after all this time,” said Judge Sarah Wright. “Her childhood and adolescence can never be reclaimed. The effect of your offending on her cannot be overestimated.”
The court heard Akhtar groomed the girl into believing they were in a relationship. In a police interview, the victim said, “Seeing someone that vaguely resembles the defendant makes her feel sick.”
Ringleader of Notorious Grooming Gang
Akhtar was branded the “ringleader” of a seven-man Asian grooming gang in Rotherham and jailed in 2018. The gang subjected young girls to degrading and violent abuse. One victim reportedly had sex with “at least 100 Asian men” by age 16, while another was gang-raped in a forest and threatened with abandonment.
The gang was the first to be prosecuted under Operation Stovewood, a National Crime Agency probe into historical child sexual exploitation in Rotherham. This large-scale investigation, launched in 2014 after the damning Jay Report, has identified over 1,500 victims.
