20 members of grooming gang convicted

TWENTY members of a grooming gang have been found guilty of raping and abusing girls as young as 11 in Huddersfield.

Between 2004 and 2011, the men plied the victims with drugs and drinks and then "used and abused at will" .

The men have been convicted of more than 120 offences against 15 girls, reported BBC. Their ringleader, 35-year-old Amere Singh Dhaliwal, was jailed for life with a minimum of 18 years.

At Leeds Crown Court, the other members of the gang were jailed for between five and 18 years.

The gang members are all British Asians and they preyed on vulnerable girls. One of the girls was described as having the mental capacity of a seven-year-old.

Jailing 16 of the men earlier this year, Judge Geoffrey Marson QC said: "The way you treated these girls defies understanding; this abuse was vile and wicked. As cases of sexual abuse with which the courts have to deal, this case comes top of the scale."

Sentencing married father-of-two Dhaliwal, the judge told him: "The extent and gravity of your offending far exceeds anything which I have previously encountered.

"Children's lives have been ruined and families profoundly affected by seeing their children, over months and years, out of control, having been groomed by you and other members of your gang."

One victim said she escaped from the men's clutches only after her family moved following a house fire. "It was the best thing I ever did, and that's bad saying that burning your house down is the best thing you ever did."

Speaking outside court, Det Ch Insp Ian Mottershaw, from West Yorkshire Police, said: "The investigation into this case has been extremely complex and the investigative team have worked tirelessly for the past five years to ensure that no stone has been left unturned.

"We welcome the convictions and sentences which have been passed down throughout the year to these depraved individuals, who subjected vulnerable young children to unthinkable sexual and physical abuse."