The leader of the infamous Rochdale group involved in sexual exploitation, commonly known as a grooming gang, is scheduled for release this week. Surprisingly, despite his criminal activities, he cannot be deported as per information provided to his victims.
Shabir Ahmed, also known as “Daddy” to the victims, held citizenship in both Britain and Pakistan. However, his British citizenship was revoked after his conviction in 2012 for numerous rapes and sexual offenses against young girls.
According to released documents allegedly from the Probation Service to one of the victims, Ahmed is set to be released on Thursday. Despite the desire to deport him back to Pakistan, legal provisions in the Immigration Act 1971 prevent his removal due to his arrival in the UK before 1973 and having resided in the country for at least five years before deportation consideration.
In 2022, Andy Burnham, a potential successor to Sir Keir Starmer as the next prime minister, urged the government to take all possible actions to expel members of grooming gangs like Ahmed.
It is anticipated that Ahmed will be released under certain conditions, requiring him to reside initially in a 24-hour staffed facility within an exclusion zone centered around Rochdale.
Paul Waugh, the Member of Parliament for Rochdale, expressed the community’s strong desire for Ahmed’s expulsion, criticizing the Pakistani government’s refusal to accept him back. Waugh suggested that if necessary, amendments to the Citizenship Act should be considered for deportation purposes.
During a two-year period starting in early 2008, underage girls were subjected to alcohol and drug-induced abuse, including gang rape in various locations. Ahmed’s trial featured his confrontation with the judge and an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, claiming unfair treatment.
He was sentenced to 19 years in 2012 at Liverpool Crown Court along with eight other individuals involved in exploiting five young girls in the Rochdale area.
Authorities reported that the victims, mostly from troubled backgrounds, were treated with disrespect and targeted due to their vulnerability. The judge emphasized the lack of regard for the victims’ well-being by the gang, based on their social and cultural differences.
Although police denied any racial or cultural motives behind the crimes, a subsequent review highlighted significant failures by law enforcement and local authorities in addressing the concerns raised about the gang’s activities.
Ahmed’s case mirrors the legal battles of two other gang members, Qari Abdul Rauf and Adil Khan, who lost their British citizenship in 2022 after a prolonged legal struggle to avoid deportation based on their human rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Home Office, responsible for immigration matters, did not confirm whether Rauf and Khan have been deported despite their citizenship revocation.
A
