Five people have been jailed for a combined 82 years over the grooming, trafficking and sexual exploitation of vulnerable teenage girls in the North Wales seaside town of Rhyl.
Mustafa Iqbal, Mohamed Usman Arshad and Ziaullah Badshah were convicted of raping girls after prosecutors said they used alcohol and drugs to facilitate their exploitation.
Jaswinder Singh was convicted of trafficking offences and supplying cannabis, while Sarah Gray was convicted of offences including perverting the course of justice, assisting an offender and drug supply conspiracies.
The five were sentenced at Caernarfon Crown Court on September 25 following a lengthy investigation and trial.
Girls Given Cannabis And Vodka
The offending began in 2022 when Iqbal encountered two teenage girls in Rhyl and persuaded them to go to his home.
Arshad and Badshah later arrived.
The girls were given cannabis and vodka.
Contact continued over subsequent weeks, with prosecutors saying Iqbal, Arshad and Badshah sexually exploited the girls.
One victim later described being treated as though she were a prostitute while her vulnerability and drug use were exploited.
Mustafa Iqbal Raped Two Girls
Iqbal, 43, of Trellewelyn Road, Rhyl, was convicted of 21 offences.
They included four counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, three offences of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, trafficking offences and conspiracies involving forced labour and drug supply.
He was also convicted of breaching a Slavery and Trafficking Risk Order.
Iqbal was jailed for 30 years and given an additional five-year extended licence period.
He was ordered to register as a sex offender for life.
Third Girl Raped Over Several Months
A third teenage victim came into contact with Iqbal while looking to buy drugs.
The court heard he subsequently raped her repeatedly over a period of around three months.
Sarah Gray allowed Iqbal to use her property in Gronant, Flintshire, where some of the abuse took place.
The victim told police she had been handcuffed during one incident and made clear she had not consented.
Arshad Jailed For 19 Years
Mohamed Usman Arshad, 36, of Clifton Grove, Rhyl, was convicted of three counts of rape.
He was also found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour and supplying cannabis.
Arshad was sentenced to 19 years in prison and ordered to register as a sex offender for life.
A Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Order was also imposed.
Cafe Owner Admitted Behaviour Was ‘Disgusting’
Arshad had previously run a family-owned cafe in Rhyl.
During police questioning, he denied that the case amounted to grooming.
When detectives challenged him about providing drugs to children and sexual contact with them, however, he acknowledged that his behaviour was wrong and described it as “disgusting”.
The prosecution said evidence showed Arshad knew or should have known the girls were children.
Badshah Jailed For 17 Years
Ziaullah Badshah, 25, of Brighton Road, Rhyl, was convicted of two counts of rape.
He was also found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour and supplying cannabis.
Badshah was jailed for 17 years.
He was also ordered to register as a sex offender for life and made subject to a Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Order.
Badshah Blamed Parents During Police Interview
During the investigation, Badshah attempted to shift responsibility towards the girls’ families.
He told detectives: “If you can’t look after your kids, don’t have babies.”
North Wales Police later criticised the offenders for repeatedly using victim-blaming language.
The court heard Badshah had come to Britain from Pakistan as an unaccompanied child and later received asylum.
Girls Referred To Using Derogatory Language
Messages recovered from phones became important evidence in the prosecution.
The men used derogatory Urdu terminology when referring to the girls and exchanged messages discussing their sexual access to them.
Prosecutors said the communications demonstrated the way in which the teenagers were treated as commodities.
Police also recovered video evidence showing Iqbal instructing one victim on how to meet him while avoiding CCTV cameras.
Singh Took Teenage Girl To London
Jaswinder Singh, 61, of River Street, Rhyl, became involved by driving the girls and providing cannabis.
He later took one teenage victim to London.
The court heard she was told to pretend to be his adult carer to avoid questions about why he was travelling with her.
Police involvement increased after concerns were raised following the London trip.
Singh was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to traffic and one count of supplying cannabis.
He was jailed for eight years and made subject to a Slavery and Trafficking Prevention Order.
Gray Was Complicit In Exploitation
Sarah Gray, 53, of Llanasa Road, Gronant, was also sentenced to eight years.
She was convicted of perverting the course of justice, assisting an offender and conspiracies to supply cocaine and cannabis.
The prosecution said Gray allowed her property to be used during the exploitation of one of the victims.
She was also found to have attempted to destroy evidence by washing bedding following an allegation of rape.
Police First Became Involved In 2022
The case has also raised questions about earlier opportunities to intervene.
Police became involved in 2022 after concerns were raised about one of the teenagers.
The men were arrested at that stage but no further action was initially taken.
The court heard that one victim had not disclosed the full extent of what was happening at the time and had sought to protect those involved.
The abuse subsequently continued before further information eventually led to renewed investigation and prosecution.
Safeguarding Review To Examine Missed Opportunities
A safeguarding review will now examine how the girls’ cases were handled and whether police, social services or other agencies could have intervened earlier.
The victims were known to local safeguarding services.
Judge Simon Mills said a review was necessary to examine why action was not taken against the offenders sooner.
Victim Says Abuse Changed Her Life
One of the girls described self-harming during the period of exploitation.
In a victim impact statement, she said she continued to struggle with relationships and intimacy.
She also described being frightened to return to Rhyl because of fears that she might encounter relatives or associates of the defendants.
“This has been the most traumatic experience I have ever faced,” she said.
She said it was something she would never forget and would have to learn to live with.
Police: Girls Were Manipulated And Exploited
Detective Chief Inspector Richard Sidney of North Wales Police said the offenders had deliberately targeted vulnerable children because they were easier to manipulate.
He said the girls had been groomed for sexual exploitation and criticised the defendants for attempting to blame others for their behaviour.
The Crown Prosecution Service praised the victims for the courage they showed in giving evidence about the abuse.
Case Fuels Debate Over Grooming Gang Inquiry In Wales
The case has also intensified political debate over whether the national grooming gangs inquiry should examine Wales more extensively.
Welsh Conservative leader Darren Millar has called for a Wales-wide inquiry, arguing that recent cases demonstrate the need to establish the scale of child sexual exploitation in Welsh communities.
Reform Wales leader Helen Jenner has also called for a dedicated inquiry.
The Welsh Government has said it is engaging with the UK-wide inquiry led by former Children’s Commissioner Baroness Anne Longfield and wants Welsh evidence and experiences to form part of its work.
The UK Government has said its wider response is intended to support survivors, investigate institutional failures and bring more offenders involved in grooming and child sexual exploitation to justice.
