Kawan Omar Ahmed, 31, of Sheffield, denies two counts of rape

The rape and grooming of a vulnerable teenage girl was not investigated until five years after police were first informed, a court has heard.

Nine men, mostly from Sheffield, went on trial today accused of raping the girl when she was aged between 15 and 17 - treating her 'like a piece of meat' and abusing her 'for their own sexual gratification'.

A tenth man is accused of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

The abuse was carried out when the teenage victim was drunk or on drugs, supplied by the grooming gang, jurors were told.

The complainant first told police about being raped and used for under-age sex in 2011 but no investigation was carried out or crime recorded, Sheffield Crown Court heard.

When the victim initially disclosed 'one rape and incidents of sex with adult men as a minor' to police, no crime was recorded by South Yorkshire Police.

When she complained for a second time about being raped in the same year, 'that investigation was too short-lived,' prosecutor Peter Hampton told a jury at Sheffield Crown Court, today.

Opening the case for the prosecution, Mr Hampton said: 'To these men she was nothing more than an object.

'These acts occurred while [the complainant] was drunk or high on drugs which had been supplied to her by the defendants.

'On other occasions [she] was forcibly raped.'

Mr Hampton added: 'When [she] did speak to those in authority, she found that no effective action was taken to stop it.'

The prosecutor said she had been referred to social services and later placed on the child protection register during her childhood.

The girl's case was only taken seriously when she was interviewed as part of the further investigation in 2016/17.

Saba Moussa Mohammad, left, denies conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. Usman Din, right, denies three counts of rape and one count of trafficking

The prosecutor said: 'By the time [the complainant] fell into the clutches of these defendants and others who abused and exploited her, she was already broken.

'She may as well have had a target on her back as far as those who were criminally minded were concerned.'

Mr Hampton said the complainant was 'effectively and efficiently groomed' by a 19-year-old woman called Amanda Spencer who knew many men in the Kurdish community in Sheffield - and introduced her to some of the defendants who would go on to rape her.

He said eight of the defendants were Kurdish.

The girl first disclosed some of what had happened to her when she was interviewed by officers aged 15 while 'still in the grip of exploitation' by Miss Spencer and some of the defendants, the court was told.

She distrusted the authorities and this situation was not helped when South Yorkshire Police 'did nothing more than submit an intelligence report', the court was told.

The prosecutor said this was 'despite the fact that [she] had disclosed one rape and other incident of sex with adult men as a minor'.

Farhad Mirzaie, 29, of Sheffield, denies two counts of rape. The abuse was carried out when the teenage victim was drunk or on drugs, supplied by the grooming gang, jurors were told

'No crime was recorded by the force and no investigation, in reality, followed.'

Mr Hampton said police had further contact with the teenager and, in 2016, interviews with her began which resulted in the current trial.

Usman Din, 35, denies three counts of rape and one count of trafficking.

Tony Juone, 61, denies one count of rape.

Kamaran Mahmoodi, 39, denies one count of rape.

Shangar Ibrahimi, 30, denies one count of rape.

Farhad Mirzaie, 29, denies two counts of rape.

Kawan Omar Ahmed, 31, denies two counts of rape.

Saman Mohammed, 41, denies one count of rape.

Jasim Sammad Mohammed, 37, denies three counts of rape.

Nzar Anwar, 40, denies one count of rape and one count of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

A 10th defendant, Saba Moussa Mohammad, 41, denies a single count of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

All 10 defendants are from Sheffield, apart from Shangar Ibrahimi, of Barnsley.

The trial continues.