Dewsbury brothers jailed for grooming and abusing girls

(L-r) Zafar Qayum, Ansar Qayum and Mohammed Jabbar Qayum were all jailed at Leeds Crown Court

Three brothers have been jailed for grooming and sexually abusing teenage girls in West Yorkshire.

Police said the offences took place between 1999 and 2004 and involved three girls who were aged between 13 and 15 at the time.

All the victims were described as "particularly vulnerable" at the time they met Zafar, Ansar and Mohammed Jabbar Qayum, from Dewsbury.

At Leeds Crown Court, all three were convicted of rape.

It follows an ongoing investigation into the sexual exploitation of teenage girls in north Kirklees between 1999 and 2012, police said.

One of the women came forward in 2017 to report what had happened to her, with officers praising the bravery of the victims for their "determination to seek justice".

• Zafar Qayum, 42, from Dewsbury was sentenced to 30 years in jail for six counts of rape, five counts of indecent assault and three counts of aiding and abetting rape

• Ansar Qayum, 45, from Dewsbury, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for four counts of rape and one offence of attempted indecent assault

• Mohammed Jabbar Qayum, 41, from Dewsbury, was sentenced to 13 years for two offences of rape

Det Ch Insp Ian Thornes, of West Yorkshire Police, said: "The court heard some highly disturbing evidence of how poorly these young victims were treated with all three brothers being found guilty of encouraging the sexual abuse of victims.

"We welcome the substantial sentences handed down to them at court today and believe these reflect the gravity of the acts they committed."

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