Seven guilty of sexually abusing two girls in care

Mohammed Siyab and Abid Saddiq were both convicted of rape and Siyab also of trafficking

Seven men have been found guilty of abusing two young girls in Rotherham, who were often collected from the children's homes where they lived and raped or sexually assaulted.

The National Crime Agency (NCA), who investigated the case, said the evidence was "some of the most harrowing" it had come across.

The girls, who were aged between 11 and 16 at the time, were groomed and plied with alcohol or drugs before being abused, the NCA added.

The men were found guilty following a nine-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court.

Their case was part of Operation Stovewood, the UK's biggest investigation into child abuse.

Tahir Yasin was found guilty of eight counts of rape, and Ramin Bari of four counts

Operation Stovewood was set up in the wake of the Jay Report, published in 2014, that found at least 1,400 girls were abused, trafficked and groomed by gangs of men of mainly Pakistani heritage in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013.

The NCA said in this case, the abuse took place at locations around the town, including in a park, in a car in a supermarket car park, in a cemetery, and even behind a children's nursery.

The jury was told how one of the girls was taken to a hotel where she was raped by two men.

The same girl was also locked inside one of her abusers' homes where she was raped on at least two occasions before escaping by climbing out of a window.

Mohammed Zameer Sadiq, Yasser Ajaibe and Mohammed Amar were also found guilty at Sheffield Crown Court

The convicted men are:

• Mohammed Siyab, 44, of Stevenson Drive, Rotherham, was found guilty of two counts of rape, sexual intercourse with a girl under 13 years and trafficking within the UK for sexual exploitation

• Abid Saddiq, 43, formerly of Rotherham, was found guilty of three counts of rape, including one of girl under 13, and indecently assaulting of a 12-year-old girl

• Tahir Yasin, 38, of Burngreave Street, Sheffield, was found guilty of eight counts of rape

• Ramin Bari, 37, of Derby Street, Sheffield, was found guilty of four counts of rape

• Mohammed Amar, 42, of Elizabeth Way, Rotherham, who was found guilty of two counts of indecently assaulting an 11-year-old girl

• Yasser Ajaibe, 39, of Walter Street, Rotherham, who was found guilty of indecently assaulting an 11-year-old girl

• Mohammed Zameer Sadiq, 49, of Richard Road, Rotherham, who was found guilty of rape and sexual intercourse with a girl under 13 years old.

They will be sentenced on 12 and 13 September.

'Dehumanise victims'

NCA Senior Investigating Officer Stuart Cobb said: "The evidence we heard from these victims was some of the most harrowing we have come across, and the offences involved some of the most serious yet investigated by officers working on Operation Stovewood.

"I pay tribute to the bravery of these two victims in coming forward and telling their stories. It was key to getting these convictions and I hope they feel that justice has finally been done.

"What happened to them was appalling. Their attackers were cruel, manipulative men, who thought it was fine to take advantage of vulnerable young girls and dehumanise their victims in the worst possible ways."

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