(top row L-R) Rehan Ali, Katub Miah, Choudhry Ikhalaq Hussain (middle row L-R) Mohammed Dauood, David Law, Mohammed Zahid (bottom row L-R) Afraz Ahmed, Mahfuz Rahman , Abid Khan Source: Greather Manchester Police

TEN MEN HAVE been jailed for 125 years for a series of sexual assaults committed in the town of Rochdale in the north of England.

This follows two trials held in Manchester over Thursday and Friday.

The group of men are Afraz Ahmed, Choudhry Ikhalaq Hussain, Rehan Ali, Kutab Miah, Mohammed Dauood, Abid Kahn, Mohammed Zahid, David Law and Mahfuz Rahman.

This group are all aged between 27 and 55.

One other man has not been named for legal reasons.

The men received sentences of up to 25 years for offences relating to child sexual exploitation in the Greater Manchester area.

This involved teenage girls being groomed and routinely sexually assaulted by older men.

The men’s victims were aged between 13 and 22 and the offences happened roughly between 2004 and 2008.

Operation Doublet was launched in 2011 and aimed at clamping down on child exploitation in Rochdale.

Detective Chief Inspector Jamie Daniels, the senior investigating officer in the case, said: “This was an extremely complex case and I want to commend the victims for the immense bravery they have shown; only with their support have we arrived at this point.”

“Child sexual exploitation is more than a criminal issue,” he went on.

It is a social problem that we are working closely with our partners to tackle on many levels. Criminal investigations and convictions allow us to remove the offender but there is a huge amount of work behind the scenes.

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