Rotherham abuse trial: Abid Saddiq denies child sex offences

Abid Saddiq denies rape, indecent assault and child abduction at Sheffield Crown Court

A man accused of sex offences against vulnerable teenage girls has denied the allegations saying: "It's not them telling the truth, it's me."

Abid Saddiq, 38, is one of six men on trial at Sheffield Crown Court accused of abusing girls in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, between 1998 and 2002.

Sheffield Crown Court was told Mr Saddiq raped a girl in an alleyway when she was aged 14 or 15, then taunted the girl's mother.

The six men deny all charges.

They are accused of offences including rape, indecent assault and child abduction of seven schoolgirls.

Mr Saddiq, from Rotherham, faces two counts of rape, five of indecent assault, and two of child abduction.

Sharaz Hussain, 35, of Fitzwilliam Road, Rotherham, and Masaued Malik, 35, are charged with four and three counts of indecent assault respectively.

Meanwhile, Aftab Hussain, 40, is accused of two counts of indecent assault.

The final two defendants cannot be named for legal reasons, with one facing a charge of rape and three of indecent assault, and the other on trial for one count of indecent assault and two of child abduction.

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Mr Saddiq, a father-of-four, said he had sex with some of the complainants, but they were over age at the time and consented.

Summing up the case, Judge Michael Slater explained how one complainant was aged 14 or 15 when she was allegedly taken down an alleyway and raped by Mr Saddiq, with the defendant supposedly then taunting her mother about the incident.

The judge read from the complainant's interview with police in 2016, with her describing Mr Saddiq as "so ugly" and "dopey Abid".

During his summing up on Friday, the judge quoted Mr Saddiq as saying of the complainants during his evidence: "I had nothing to do with any of them until they were over 18.

"It's not them telling the truth, it's me."