Shocking details of a large-scale Asian sex gang who spent four years plying vulnerable young girls with drink and drugs at 'sex parties' in Newcastle can be revealed for the first time today.

A total of 17 men and one woman have been convicted of, or have admitted, charges including rape, supplying drugs and inciting prostitution, in a series of trials at Newcastle Crown Court.

Older men preyed on immature teenagers who were plied with cocaine, cannabis, alcohol or mephedrone (M-Cat), then raped or persuaded into having sexual activity at parties known as 'sessions'.

The case has raised huge controversy after a convicted rapist was paid almost £10,000 of taxpayers' money to spy on parties where under-age girls were intoxicated and sexually abused.

Saiful Islam (left) bought one victim Malibu and took her to house where he and friends knew they could abuse girls and coerced her into having sex. Yasser Hussain (right) hosted 'parties'

Redwan Siddique (left) told a victim to have sex with him in return for drugs. Mohammed Azram (right) admitted five drugs offences, on count of sexual assault and one of inciting prostitution

Mohammed Hassan Ali (left) met his 15-year-old victim at a party and started a relationship after she claimed to be 18 but he continued to have sex with her after finding out her real age. Carolann Gallon (right) who was aged 17 and 18 at the time, admitted three offences of trafficking girls for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

Northumbria Police launched a major investigation after receiving information from social workers and initially spoke to 108 potential victims.

Over the course of four trials, 20 young women gave evidence covering a period from 2011 to 2014.

Those prosecuted were from the Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian, Iraqi, Iranian and Turkish communities and were mainly British-born, with most living in the West End of Newcastle.

This is the seventh large scale sex gang scandal to hit the UK after infamous cases from towns including Rotherham, Rochdale, Oxford and Bristol

Northumbria Police has said that the force has thrown the 'kitchen sink' at the operation in Newcastle and assigned 50 officers to the lengthy investigation

A 13-year-old said she was taken from her home and repeatedly raped by men as if they were in a 'relay race' at one of the 'parties'

A chief constable has defended his decision to pay a convicted child rapist almost £10,000 to spy on parties during the investigation

The court heard that one of the men convicted, 37-year-old Badrul Hussain, was heard telling a ticket collector on the Tyne and Wear Metro: 'All white women are good for one thing, for men like me to f*** and use as trash, that is all women like you are worth.'

The sex ring was exposed when two women spoke to the authorities in 2013 and within weeks police had made 27 arrests under an investigation which became known as Operation Shelter.

During a series of trials that followed, one young person gave evidence on six separate occasions in front of six different juries about her plight.

Eisa Mousavi (left) was convicted of three counts of rape and two counts of supplying drugs. Prabhat Nelli (right) was convicted of two counts of supplying drugs and one count of conspiracy to incite prostitution

Taherul Alam (left) was convicted of supplying drugs, attempting to sexually assault, and inciting prostitution. Nashir Uddin (right) was convicted of sexual assault, inciting prostitution and drugs offences

Who was in the sex gang and what did they all do? Defendants who have been sentenced: Saiful Islam , 35, of Newcastle, was jailed for 10 years in January 2016 for raping a 15-year-old girl in 2011.

, 35, of Newcastle, was jailed for 10 years in January 2016 for raping a 15-year-old girl in 2011. Yasser Hussain , 28, of Newcastle, was jailed for two years in October 2015 for a sex attack and for allowing his premises to be used in the supply of drugs after a jury heard how he hosted parties.

, 28, of Newcastle, was jailed for two years in October 2015 for a sex attack and for allowing his premises to be used in the supply of drugs after a jury heard how he hosted parties. Mohammed Hassan Ali , 34, of Newcastle, was jailed for seven years in December 2015 for sexual activity with a child, supplying cannabis and possession with intent to supply M-Kat.

, 34, of Newcastle, was jailed for seven years in December 2015 for sexual activity with a child, supplying cannabis and possession with intent to supply M-Kat. Redwan Siddique , 32, of Newcastle, was jailed for 16 months in February for supplying M-Kat to a 19-year-old in return for sex at his student digs in 2013. Defendants yet to be sentenced: Carolann Gallon , 22, from Newcastle, aged 17-18 at the time, admitted three offences of trafficking girls for the purposes of sexual exploitation. Mohammed Azram, 35, of Newcastle, admitted five drugs offences and was convicted of one count of sexual assault and one count of conspiracy to incite prostitution for gain. Jahangir Zaman , 45, of Newcastle, was convicted of rape, supplying drugs and inciting prostitution. Nashir Uddin , 35, of Newcastle, was convicted of sexual assault, allowing premises to be used to supply drugs, conspiracy to incite prostitution and who admitted four counts of supplying drugs and three of possessing drugs. Abdulhamid Minoyee , 34, of Newcastle, was convicted of rape and sexual assault and pleaded guilty to supplying drugs. Eisa Mousavi , 42, of Newcastle, was convicted of three counts of rape, two counts of supplying drugs, allowing premises to be used for the supply of drugs and conspiracy to incite prostitution. Monjur Choudhury , 33, of Newcastle, was convicted of supplying drugs, permitting premises to be used for the supply of drugs and conspiracy to incite prostitution. Taherul Alam, 32, Newcastle, who was convicted of two counts of supplying drugs, one count of permitting premises to be used for supplying drugs, attempting to sexually assault, and of conspiracy to incite prostitution. Prabhat Nelli , 33, Newcastle, who was convicted of two counts of supplying drugs and one count of conspiracy to incite prostitution. Nadeem Aslam , 43, Newcastle, who admitted possessing cannabis and was convicted of two counts of supplying drugs, one count of possessing drugs and one count of permitting premises to be used in the supply of drugs. The final trial saw three men convicted and one man admit charges against him. Habibur Rahim , 34, of Fenham, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to incite prostitution, relating to eight different victims. He supplied them with cannabis and mephedrone and was also convicted of a number of trafficking for sexual exploitation offences. He was convicted of one count of rape. Abdul Sabe , 40, of Newcastle, was convicted of conspiracy to incite prostitution, conspiracy to traffic for sexual exploitation, conspiracy to sexual assault, and supplying drugs to victims. He was already on the sex offenders' register. Badrul Hussain , 37, of Newcastle, was convicted of allowing drugs to be used at his premises and of supplying drugs. He was cleared of inciting prostitution for gain. Mohibur Rahman , 44, known to victims as Jimmy, admitted conspiracy to incite prostitution and five drugs charges. Defendants not yet sentenced will be back next month. Advertisement

A total of 17 men and one woman have now been convicted of a string of offences and face jail when they are sentenced next month.

Four of the men - Mohammed Ali, Solful Islam, Yasser Hussain and Redwan Siddquee - have already been sent to prison for a total of 20 years and four months.

The wider operation has seen around 100 people convicted of a range of serious offences, including drugs, modern-day slavery and firearms charges, with jail terms totalling more than 300 years.

Northumbria Police Chief Constable Steve Ashman said in a statement today: 'To date we have arrested 461 people, spoken to 703 potential complainants and have found 278 victims.

'In total we now have 93 convictions delivering more than 300 years of imprisonment in addition to today's convictions.'

He added: 'Many of us will never understand the traumatic experience some of these women and girls have endured and they have my wholehearted commitment that, together with our partners, we will continue to provide them with all the support they need. They have trusted us and we must not let them down.

'We have thrown the kitchen sink at this - a team of 50 officers have worked on this inquiry for almost three and a half years and continue to do so.

'We have not and will not stop. We have employed every technique available to us, covert and overt, in tackling the problem.'

Mohibur Rahman (left) admitted conspiracy to incite prostitution and drugs charges. Jahanger Zaman (right) was convicted of rape, supplying drugs and inciting prostitution

Nadeem Aslam (left) was convicted of drugs offences. Abdul Sabe (right) was convicted of conspiracy to incite prostitution, conspiracy to traffic for sexual exploitation and conspiracy to sexual assault

Abdulhamid Minoyee (left) was convicted of rape and sexual assault. Monjur Choudhury (right) was convicted of conspiracy to incite prostitution and drugs offences

Chief Constable Ashman added: 'There has been no political correctness here. These are criminals and there has been no hesitation in arresting them and targeting them using all the means at our disposal.

'It is for individual communities to ask themselves whether they are doing all they can to eradicate such attitudes and behaviour so that the stigma and shame attached to such people prevents it from rearing its head again.

'The communities that we work with are appalled at this offending and we have encountered nothing other than the fullest of support from them all.'

The investigation into child sexual exploitation in Newcastle, Operation Shelter, was part of a wider inquiry called Operation Sanctuary.

Prosecutor John Elvidge told Newcastle Crown Court at the start of one of the trials: 'The prosecution say the case concerns the sexual exploitation of vulnerable young women and girls in Newcastle.

'The events happened over a period of time between 2010 and 2014 and involved immature young women and teenage girls being exploited, say the prosecution, by a group of older men, using drugs and alcohol.'

A huge haul of drugs was recovered as part of the massive police investigation into the ring

Immature teenagers were plied with drugs and alcohol and then raped or persuaded into engaging in sexual activity with older men

The prosecutor added: 'You will hear the girls were exposed to a party culture where young women such as these were lured to parties known as sessions by the offer of intoxicants, alcohol and drugs, which were made freely available to them to incite them to perform sexual services in return.

'During this period of time this method of exploitation became well established in the West End of Newcastle particularly and provided a form of recreation for a group of men including these defendants, who were active in organising parties in the expectation the girls who came would be involved in sexual activity.

'The prosecution say in this period these defendants and other men were party to a conspiracy to incite prostitution using drugs and alcohol at these sessions or parties in Newcastle. Mcat was a drug of choice used to exploit young women.'

Harrowing evidence of 13-year-old victim raped by men 'like they were in a relay race' One girl who gave evidence claimed she was repeatedly raped by men acting as if they were in a 'relay race' at one of the sex parties. The vulnerable 13-year-old, who was in local authority care, told the court how she would regularly be supplied with cash, cigarettes and drugs in exchange for sex. She spoke of how she would be picked up in a Mercedes from the children's home where she was living and taken to flats in Newcastle to be used by anyone who wanted her. Prosecutor John Elvedge QC told the court how during one attack she was high on cocaine while men took turns to have sex with her. One victim, who was in local authority care, told how she was taken to flats around Newcastle and passed between men for rape Mr Elvedge said: 'She said she felt wrecked. The man who brought the Mcat had sex with her when she was in no position to consent. 'The second man was followed by several others, all taking advantage of her. 'She said it was like a relay race, one man after another, each having sexual intercourse with her to which she did not consent.' On another occasion, the girl was taken to a party at a flat where there was a group of seven men in a room with a Kurdish flag on the wall and was given Mcat, the court heard. Mr Elvedge added: 'She attempted to resist the first man. She was given more Mcat then, one by one, they took their turn having sexual intercourse with her.' The court heard when she left she was driven back to the children's home and given £200 along with more Mcat. The girl was a frequent runaway who would regularly go missing. Mr Elvidge said: 'The young women are now in their early 20s. You will gather when they were involved with the defendants they were leading extraordinary lives. 'The prosecution say it was their vulnerability that made it easier for them to be exploited and abused. They were females who were relatively naive and vulnerable. 'They were the victims of organised, well-practised cynical exploitation and were passed between abusers.' Advertisement

Sex gang police defend decision to pay £10,000 to undercover informer who was convicted child rapist – who judge found was 'unreliable and dishonest'

A chief constable has defended his decision to pay a convicted child rapist almost £10,000 to spy on parties where it was suspected under-age girls were fed drugs and sexually abused.

Northumbria Police deployed the man, who can be identified only as XY, to infiltrate the gangs who were hosting parties where underage girls were attacked and plied with drugs.

The use of the informant was roundly criticised in court by defence teams who said it was 'misconduct' and 'bad faith' and claimed the proceedings should have been stopped to 'protect the integrity of the criminal justice system'.

A judge also described him as 'dishonest', 'unreliable' and 'lacking credibility'.

But Northumbria Police has defended its use of the informant and said his involvement allowed the force to 'detect and prevent serious crimes'.

Northumbria Police Chief Constable Steve Ashman, pictured, has defended paying £10,000 to a convicted rapist who acted as an informant in the investigation of a child sex gang in Newcastle

XY, who said he was paid up to £300 per month for his information, had claimed the investigation was a 'racist' operation by the police and said his handler used the phrase 'darkies'.

The informant claimed he was instructed to plant drugs, hide the fact that an alleged rape complainant had told him she had lied, listen to privileged conversations between defendants and their lawyers at court and put under pressure to do nothing to help the defence.

After days of legal arguments, Judge Penny Moreland refused to throw any of the cases out and concluded that XY, whose credibility was 'central' to the application, was 'wholly unworthy of belief in respect of any matter at all'.

Judge Moreland said XY had acted out of 'self interest' and not a desire to tell the truth and that she found him 'inherently unreliable, so lacking in credibility and so clearly dishonest'.

The judge said she was not satisfied there had been any misconduct on behalf of the police to allow XY to be deployed as an informant.

Judge Moreland added: 'There is no evidence that any of the proper procedures for the handling of informants were breached.'

SEXUAL EXPLOITATION IS THE 'CHALLENGE OF OUR GENERATION' Sexual exploitation is the 'challenge of our generation' and must be considered socially unacceptable in all communities, a top policeman has said. Chief Constable Steve Ashman, of Northumbria Police, also said strong punishments are needed to deal with the 'vile' individuals who target vulnerable people, and to act as a deterrent. His statement followed a number of trials that heard how immature teenagers were plied with drugs and alcohol and then raped or persuaded into engaging in sexual activity with older men. The officer suggested something must have gone wrong in society for such actions to be considered acceptable. Chief Constable Steve Ashman (second left) said strong punishments are required Mr Ashman said: 'The sexual exploitation of vulnerable people is in my opinion the challenge of our generation. 'It is a huge task that we are faced with.' He added: 'Firstly, for this challenge to be overcome there needs to be a high likelihood that offenders will be caught and victims supported. 'I am confident that we are getting this right, we will never stop pursuing those responsible, and we will throw everything we can at them and we will catch them. 'Secondly, we need a heavy sanction that acts as a clear deterrent and to deliver punishment to those vile individuals that prey on the vulnerable. 'Thirdly, and most importantly, it has to become socially unacceptable in every community to behave in this way. 'Given the number of men that we have arrested 461 in total, clearly somewhere along the line something has gone wrong if it has become acceptable to entice, through alcohol, drugs or just through bullying and violence, vulnerable people into sex. 'This behaviour can never be tolerated.' A total of 17 men and one woman have been convicted of, or have admitted, charges including rape, supplying drugs and inciting prostitution, in a series of trials at Newcastle Crown Court. Advertisement

Chief Constable Ashman, pictured with Newcastle City Council chief executive Pat Richie, said the informant, known as XY, had helped 'detect and prevent serious crimes'

The judge said: 'Despite the criticisms levelled at the police for the use of XY, there is no evidence that XY was guilty of any sexual misconduct towards any of the complainants or anyone else during his time as informant.'

XY gave evidence in court in person during the application and said: 'This was for Asians, Muslims.

'It's an Asian, Muslim operation. I was told that from the beginning. I told him (unknown person - possibly a police officer) it was a white party.

He said he's not actually interested in that, this operation is about Asian group gangs.

'I know that, from the beginning, it's called Operation Sanctuary. They said it is an Asian group gang operation.'

NSPCC 'appalled' at police payments of child sex offender NSPCC lead expert on tackling child sexual abuse, Jon Brown, said: 'We are appalled to learn that police paid a rapist and planted him in the midst of vulnerable young girls. 'You just couldn't make it up. It beggars belief that it would ever have been considered, let alone approved, and serious questions must be asked about the force's approach to child sexual exploitation operations. 'However good the force's intentions, their misguided actions run entirely counter to all current child protection procedures and what we know about sex offenders and could have compromised this investigation. 'What we mustn't forget in all this is the victims who were preyed on by a series of despicable men for their own sexual gratification. It is right that these men are now behind bars.' Advertisement

XY said that he was asked to attend court during one of the early trials and 'watch the defendants and the barristers'.

He claimed he had been asked to 'watch what the barristers were getting up to' and ended up getting his hands on a DVD containing defence material.

XY said: 'After the DVD was found I got a standing ovation from police, they were clapping, laughing and everything. They said, 'Do you want anything for it?'

'After the DVD was found I met up with them. Two officers and myself. They were ecstatic.

'I was told to keep an eye on the defendants and the people around, the barristers.

'I would talk to defendants, find out what they said to their barristers and what their barristers said to them.'

XY told the court that he was asked by the police to provide information which would lead to a conviction.

When asked what he was requested to find out, XY said: 'What was going on in the area, the party scene, places where there was activity.

'There were certain individuals they were very interested in, which I was close to.'

XY said he was given a list of around ten Asian names by the police and these belonged to people he had spent time with.

When asked by a defence barrister if he was told to plant drugs in the homes or cars of the defendants, he said: 'I can't incriminate the police in any way. I refuse to answer that question.'

EDL CLAIMED SILENCE 'REEKS OF MANIPULATION' The investigation into child sexual exploitation in Newcastle, Operation Shelter, was part of a wider inquiry called Operation Sanctuary. The wider operation has seen around 100 people convicted of a range of serious offences, including drugs, modern-day slavery and firearms charges, with jail terms totalling more than 300 years. Northumbria Police made frequent announcements after launching Operation Sanctuary in 2014, but then stopped releasing details once reporting restrictions were imposed by the courts to avoid prejudicing later prosecutions. That left a vacuum of information which some on the far right looked to exploit, claiming details were suppressed. The English Defence League claimed 'the long silence about these cases reeks of manipulation and procrastination for political purposes'. However, Chief Constable of Northumbria Police Steve Ashman, said: 'There has been no political correctness here. 'These are criminals and there has been no hesitation in arresting them and targeting them using all the means at our disposal. 'It is for individual communities to ask themselves whether they are doing all they can to eradicate such attitudes and behaviour so that the stigma and shame attached to such people prevents it from rearing its head again. 'The communities that we work with are appalled at this offending and we have encountered nothing other than the fullest of support from them all.' Advertisement

The full sacle of the abuse emerged in a series of trials at Newcastle Crown Court (pictured)

He also refused to confirm whether or not he was asked to do anything illegal.

He said: 'I can't answer any question against Northumbria Police. I can't say anything about them, my hands are tied. No matter what I do, it will affect my family.'

XY told the court that after a time he had trouble trusting the police and had recorded them.

He said: 'They (the police) would not show me their badges. I didn't know if they were police, I got suspicious. I didn't know if they were there to protect me. I didn't know who they were.'

The court heard how XY had complained to the National Crime Agency about the police and his allegations have been referred to the IPCC.

Some of the so-called 'sessions' took place at Todds Nook flats, where alcohol and Mcat were freely available, the court heard

Despite his comments about the officers' behaviour and his reluctance to answer questions, XY denied being threatened by the police.

He added: 'The handlers have been nothing but supporting. They said to me make sure you tell the truth, the truth is better than anything else.'

However he also said he 'was not allowed to be open and honest'.XY had become agitated during his evidence and even shouted 'f*** off you divvy' to one of the defendants during the hearing.

Northumbria Police Chief Constable Steve Ashman said in a statement: 'We know concerns have been raised about our use of a police Informant known as XY.

'XY was an authorised covert human intelligence source (CHIS), an informant, who was able to report on criminality including CSE.

'He was a convicted rapist and to some of us the thought of the police engaging with such a person and paying them for information may appear repugnant, however he proved he was in a position whereby he could, and did, alert police to situations which allowed them to prevent offending and provide safeguarding measures towards potential victims.

'The lawful and regulated use of such tactics is always overseen by a senior police officer and is also subject to review by an independent body.

'Furthermore in this case the handling of XY by Northumbria Police was the subject of an independent investigation by the IPCC in which no misconduct was found nor any recommendations made whatsoever.

'In the case of XY it is clear that his relationships with others have allowed the police to prevent and detect some of the most serious crimes occurring in our communities, this would not have been possible through conventional methods.'

Abuser whose flat the gang used smiled at girl who challenged him Girls as young as 14 visited the flat of one gang member, Eisa Mousavi, where Mcat was freely available. Prosecutor Mr Elvedge said: 'One girl became so intoxicated she became unable to refuse him for sex. 'She only had sex with him because she was high and heavily addicted to Mcat. She returned many times to feed her addiction. 'One time she refused Mousavi's request for sex and he continued to pester her. He was manipulating her. She was shouting that she didn't want to have sex. 'Other girls told him to leave her alone and he banished them and told them they would get no more drugs.' Mousavi raped the girl on more than one occasion. When she asked for more drugs, he told her: 'Just do it, you know the deal.' Mr Elvidge said: 'She told him he couldn't keep treating her like this but he just smiled.' Advertisement