Nazir Ahmed's trial starts for sexual offences against children

NAZIR AHMED,64, formerly Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, went on trial at Sheffield Crown Court last week accused of sexual offences against children dating back more than 40 years, The Telegraph reported.

The former politician is also accused of a serious sexual assault against a boy under 11, also in the early 1970s, plus the indecent assault of the same youngster.

A jury was told how the woman alleges that Ahmed attempted to rape her in the early 1970s, when the defendant was about 16 or 17 years old but she was much younger. The jury was played a recording of a telephone call between the two complainants, made by the woman after she went to the police in 2016, the report added.

Tom Little QC, prosecuting, told the jury the call was prompted by the man contacting the woman by email saying: "I have evidence against that paedophile."

According to Little, Ahmed claimed the allegations were a "malicious fiction", but the recording showed they were not "made up or concocted".

"What they did to you was utterly wrong and it's time now to seek justice for the little boy who could not protect himself. I'm not waiting any more. This is not just for me. It's for you and for all the children Nazir Ahmed has abused and his brothers now," the woman was quoted as saying in the recording to the man by the newspaper.

"The police will look after you. They will believe you. They will take your allegations seriously. They are on your side. You are a victim."

"I don't want the bastard to get away with it. I thought I was the only one," the man replied according to the recording played in the court.

The barrister said Ahmed will not be claiming there is an innocent explanation for the allegations. He said: "(Ahmed's) case is that they did not occur and this is all a malicious fiction."

Ahmed was charged along with his two older brothers, Mohammed Farouq, 71, and Mohammed Tariq, 65, but both these men have been deemed unfit to stand trial, The Telegraph report added.

"This is about repeated sexual abuse that took place in Rotherham over a number of years. Those involved kept it buried away for many years. It is no longer buried away and no longer kept quiet as they have complained," Little was quoted as saying in the court by the newspaper while opening the prosecution case.

"This was not a single incident. It was not isolated and it was not innocent sexual experimentation by children. It was abuse, repeated abuse, plain and simple. Nasir Ahmed at the time [of the complaint] was a member of the House of Lords. He is no longer a member of the House of Lords."

According to him, the male complainant told the police the abuse by the brothers began when he was at infants school.

Ahmed denied buggery of a boy under 11, two counts of attempted rape of a girl under 16 and the indecent assault of a boy under 11, The Telegraph report further said.