Rotherham grooming victim frustrated over parole wait

Elizabeth said she "felt sick" to know her rapist had been seen near her home

A grooming victim has said she feels frustrated by the wait for a parole hearing for the man who raped her.

Asghar Bostan was convicted of rape in 2018 and jailed for nine years before being granted parole in August 2022.

He was recalled to prison for breaking his licence conditions in January, but his victim was told it could be 18 months before his next parole hearing.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has said victims were notified about updates relevant to their case.

The woman, known as Elizabeth as she has lifetime anonymity, said waiting for Bostan's parole hearing to decide how long he would remain in prison was "disgraceful".

"As victims, we go through this process of long bail dates, long waits to go to court and when something like this happens, we're waiting again," she said.

"It's like we're waiting on a broken system."

Asghar Bostan was recalled to prison in January

Elizabeth was aged about 14 or 15 years old when she was raped twice at a flat in Rotherham having been given alcohol and drugs before the assault.

Bostan was prosecuted following the National Crime Agency's Operation Stovewood inquiry into historical sexual abuse in Rotherham.

He was convicted by a jury of two counts of rape in February 2018 and was released on parole in August 2022.

Bostan was spotted by a friend of Elizabeth's in Rotherham in January and was arrested and recalled to a category B prison for breaching his parole conditions.

Elizabeth told the BBC she was devastated to learn he had been near her home.

"I felt sick," she said.

"How could they have not realised where he was? Not even a mile away from my home."

'Radical change'

Maggie Oliver, a whistleblower who resigned from Greater Manchester Police over the force's poor handling of child sexual abuse in Rochdale, supports survivors like Elizabeth.

She said victims need to be better informed about the future of their abusers.

"This prolongs the trauma for Elizabeth," she said. "She is unable to continue with her life and build a future.

"We need radical changes to a system which is completely broken."

The MoJ said: "Victims are supported through the Victim Contact Scheme which includes being notified on important updates relevant to their case such as parole hearings.

"Offenders released on licence are kept under close supervision and subject to strict conditions for the remainder of their sentence.

"They face recall to prison if they breach them - as was the case in this instance."