NINE men who ran the Rochdale child sex abuse ring were eventually jailed for a string of offences in 2012.

Sun Online looks at the group from Rochdale and Oldham, who exploited girls as young as 13.

2 Top row, left to right, Abdul Rauf, Hamid Safi, Mohammed Sajid and Abdul Aziz; bottom row, left to right, Abdul Qayyum, Adil Khan, Mohammed Amin and Kabeer Hassan Credit: PA:Press Association

What happened to the Rochdale child sex abuse ring?

In 2012 nine men were jailed for their part in a child sexual exploitation ring in Rochdale.

The men from Rochdale and Oldham were found guilty of offences including rape and conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child.

The vile group exploited girls as young as 13 and were initially given sentences ranging from four to 19 years.

The court heard how the men - eight of Pakistani origin and one from Afghanistan - gave their victims drink and drugs before “passing them” round for sex.

The abuse took place at two takeaway restaurants- now under new management - in the Heywood area of Rochdale by the men aged between 24 and 59.

How many men were convicted?

Speaking in 2012 Judge Gerald Clifton said the men treated the girls "as though they were worthless and beyond respect".

Ringleader Shabir Ahmed was originally handed a 19 year sentence which was upped to 22 years for repeatedly raping a girl.

The Manchester Evening News reports how the former delivery driver and dad-of-four encouraged his victims to call him “daddy”.

The BBC reports Kabeer Hassan, then 25, of Oldham, was sentenced to nine years for rape and three years, concurrently, for the conspiracy conviction.

Abdul Aziz, then 41 and a married dad-of-three, of Rochdale, was convicted of trafficking for sexual exploitation and received a nine year sentence.

The taxi driver was said in court to have taken over as the main trafficker of the girls.

Abdul Rauf, then 43, of Rochdale, was convicted of trafficking a child within the UK for sexual exploitation and received six years.

He was a married father-of-five and religious studies teacher at a local mosque.

Adil Khan, then 42, and also of Rochdale was convicted of trafficking a child within the UK for sexual exploitation and received eight years.

It was said Khan, who is married with one child, fathered the child of a 13-year-old victim.

Mohammed Sajid, then 35 and of Rochdale, was convicted of one count of rape, sexual activity with a girl under 16 and trafficking for sexual exploitation and was jailed for 12 years.

It was reported he would be deported back to Pakistan following the conclusion of his sentence.

Mohammed Amin, 45, of Falinge, was convicted of sexual assault and received a five-year jail term.

He was a driver for Eagle Taxis for 14 years and was known as "Car Zero".

Hamid Safi, then 22 and of no fixed address, was convicted of trafficking girls for the purposes of sexual exploitation and sentenced to four years.

It was said he came to the UK on a lorry in 2008 and claimed asylum and would be deported to Afghanistan at the end of his sentence.

Taxi driver Abdul Qayyum, 44, of Rochdale, - known by the name "Tiger" - was jailed for five years.

2 Shabir Ahmed, the ringleader of a gang of Asian men who groomed young white girls for sex Credit: PA:Press Association

How did they groom their victims?

Liverpool Crown Court heard the group plied five victims with drink and drugs and "passed them around" for sex.

A 15-year-old girl was ordered to have sex with takeaway worker Kabeer Hassan as a birthday "treat", the judge told the court.

Abdul Rauf reportedly asked a 15-year-victim if she had any younger friends and would drive some of the girls to other men who would use them for sex.

What has happened since?

Four members of the grooming gang – including ringleader Shabir Ahmed – face deportation to Pakistan.

The other three are Adil Khan, Qari Abdul Rauf and Abdul Aziz.

Khan, Rauf and Aziz were convicted of conspiracy and trafficking for sexual exploitation charges.

In June 2017 it was revealed that the members of the Rochdale gang facing deportation will receive legal aid to fight attempts to send them back to Pakistan, prompting widespread public anger.

In December 2013 a further five men were jailed after an investigation into the sexual abuse of a girl was reopened following the exposure of police failings.

The victim told police in 2008 Freddie Kendakumana raped her but he was not charged until October 2012.

In 2015 three men were sentenced for a string of child sexual offences that took place in Rochdale.

Two girls aged 13 and 15 and a 13-year-old boy were groomed by the three men between September and October 2014 after repeatedly going missing from care.