14 Asian males on trial for exploiting white schoolgirl for sex in Keighley

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was aged 13 and 14 when she was allegedly raped and sexually abused over a 13-month period by a number of men in encounters arranged by a violent drug dealer.

Thirteen men aged between 18 and 62 and a 17-year-old youth went on trial yesterday charged with 28 sex offences between them. The girl, who is white and British, is alleged to have been raped by five men in succession in one attack alone.

Bradford Crown Court heard how police and social services were aware of the victim after regular reports of her going missing, and she had been spoken to about the dangers of hanging around with older men. But the authorities were not aware of the sex abuse, the jury was told.

The exploitation allegedly began in May 2011 when the girl told Arif Choudhury, who is not on trial, that she no longer wanted to deliver drugs for him.

Michelle Colborne, prosecuting, said: “How did a sensible child who had just entered school end up delivering drugs at the age of 13?”

Choudhury physically assaulted the girl and raped her in a churchyard before introducing her to other men for sexual encounters against her will, the jury was told.

The court heard Choudhury was present at most of the encounters around Keighley and often used violence. He allegedly took the girl to Dalton Lane where she was forced to have sex with five of the defendants – Nazir Khan, Saqib Younis, Hussain Sardar, Zain Ali and Faisal Khan.

Offences involving Sufyan Ziarab, Yasser Kabir, Bilal Ziarab and Tauqeer Hussain allegedly took place in an underground car park in Keighley. Police found DNA evidence linking Tauqeer Hussain, the court heard. The girl was allegedly forced to perform sex acts on Rohail Iqbal and Rohail Hussain behind a container outside Keighley Leisure Centre.

Israr Ali is also accused of forcing the girl to carry out a sex act on him in a park. A 17-year-old defendant is accused of raping the girl in another park in the town.

The court heard taxi driver Mohammed Akram had sex with the girl after offering her a lift. Tauqeer Hussain is accused of raping a second teenage girl in 2009.

Ms Colborne said the girl had a “chaotic existence” and was reported missing from home 71 times over a two-year period. The court heard she once reported being raped but later withdrew the allegation.

The prosecutor added: “She was being exploited and was out of her depth but was too naive to do anything about it.”

Yasser Kabir, 25, of Belgrave Road, Keighley, denies four charges of rape while Nazir Khan, 23, of Buxton Street, Keighley, and Tauqeer Hussain, 23, of Belgrave Road, Keighley, deny three counts of rape.

Israr Ali, 19, of Devonshire Street West, Keighley, Hussain Sardar, 19, of Bradford Street, Lawkholme, Keighley, Saqib Younis, 29, of Bradford Street, Lawkholme, Bilal Ziarab, 21, of Sedgwick Close, Manningham, Sufyan Ziarab, 22, of Kendal Mellor Court, Keighley, Zain Ali, 20, of Buxton Street, Keighley, and Faisal Khan, 27, of Buxton Street, Keighley, all deny two charges of rape.

Rohail Iqbal, 22, of Skipton Road, Beechcliffe, Rohail Hussain, 18, of Hawk Street, Lawkholme, and a 17-year-old youth all deny one count of rape. Mohammed Akram, 62, of Holker Street, Keighley, denies one charge of sexual activity with a child under 16. The trial continues today.