Two men guilty of trafficking young girls

Farhang Taha (right) and Attullah Areen were both found guilty of arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation

• Update 16 September 2025: On 6 August 2025 at Warwick Crown Court, Attullah Areen was jailed for seven years and Farhang Taha received an 18-month suspended sentence.

Two men who plied two young girls in Coventry with alcohol and cocaine have been found guilty of trafficking offences.

Attullah Areen, 31, of Scarborough Way, was convicted of two charges of arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, following a trial at Warwick Crown Court.

Farhang Taha 26, of Vincent Street, was found guilty on one count of the same charge.

West Midlands Police said the court heard how the girls had been picked up and driven to addresses in the city, where they were supplied with substances before being sexually abused.

The pair, who had denied the charges despite police finding video clips of the abuse on one of their phones, are due to be sentenced at the same court on 6 August.

The abuse took place between 2016 and 2018, when the victims were 15 and 16 years old, the force said.

It added that they came forward to report the abuse in 2021 and an investigation was launched, however both of the men had tried to claim the girls had lied.

Following the 26 June convictions, a police spokesperson praised the bravery of the now-adult victims in coming forward.

They added that the force worked hard to ensure all victims and survivors of sexual abuse felt able to approach police, and robust investigations were carried out to bring perpetrators to justice.

• Update 16 September 2025: An earlier version of this story wrongly said Taha and Areen were convicted of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. West Midlands Police has since confirmed that it put out wrong information about charges, which were 'Arrange or facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation'. We have amended our article to make this clear and also added an update note on sentencing.

• Update 19 September 2025: The Crown Prosecution Service has since confirmed that Farhang Taha was convicted of one count of arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, and not two as stated by West Midlands Police. We have further amended the article to make this clear.