102 years behind bars for Rotherham grooming gang
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GUILTY: (L-R: top to bottom) Arshid Hussain, Basharat Hussain, Bannaras Hussain, Karen MacGregor, Shelley Davies and Qurban Ali were sentenced to a combined 102 years in prison
Huge sentence ‘sends out a message to other offenders’
Five people have been jailed for a combined total of over 100 years for the sexual exploitation of 15 young girls in Rotherham.
At Sheffield Crown Court on Friday 26th February, brothers Arshid, Basharat and Banaras Hussain, were sentenced alongside Karen MacGregor and Qurban Ali following an 11-week trial.
It had earlier taken a jury just over 24 hours to reach their verdict during a court appearance on Wednesday.
Arshid Hussain, 40, of East Cowick, Goole, was jailed for 35 years, whilst Basharat Hussain, 38, of no fixed address, was handed a 25 year sentence.
The pair had been found guilty of a total of 38 offences, including rape, indecent assault, abduction, false imprisonment and making threats to kill.
After entering guilty pleas to multiple sexual offences at an earlier hearing, Bannaras Hussain, 36, from Goole, was jailed for 19 years
Meanwhile, MacGregor was jailed for 13 years and Ali for 10.
Shelley Davies, 40, of Wainwright Road, Rotherham, was given an 18 month sentence, suspended for two years.
Speaking outside court following the sentencing, Temporary Detective Chief Inspector Martin Tate said: “Huge, huge sentences... send a real message out to offenders out there that the courts take this extremely seriously.
“I'm really, really proud of the police investigation team that's worked on this for the last two years but more importantly the bravery of the victims has been absolutely immense.”
He added: “I'd implore victims if you are out there please come forward. We accept there is much to do. We get that. This is one step in the right direction for us and I hope victims see that.”