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The man at the centre of a child sex ring in Rochdale has been convicted of 30 counts of rape.
Shabir Ahmed, 59, had already been found guilty of multiple child sex offences, but was not named until now because he faced further charges.
On 8th May, Ahmed was convicted of conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child, trafficking a minor within the UK, two counts of rape, aiding and abetting rape, and sexual assault.
He was jailed for 19 years and ordered to sign the sex offender's register for life.
At Manchester Crown Court today, Ahmed was convicted of the systematic rape of a girl over the course of 14 years.
The abuse began when the girl was just three years old, and continued until she was 17. His victim eventually came forward and reported the offences to Police.
Detective Chief Superintendent Mary Doyle, head of GMP’s Public Protection Division, said: “This girl has shown phenomenal bravery to come forward and tell the police and other authorities about what happened to her and I hope today’s outcome gives other victims of abuse the confidence to trust in the police.
“We do take all forms of abuse and exploitation extremely seriously and are continually working with our partners to ensure we improve the ways to deal with vulnerable people.
“We already knew Ahmed was an integral part of the Rochdale grooming case - now we can also say his horrific campaign of abuse began many years ago with the systematic rape of this one victim.
“Ahmed was in many ways the ring-leader of a loosely connected on-street grooming ring. Over the course of several years, he was the common denominator in a group of men who raped and abused girls aged between 13 and 17 at the time of the offences.
“We are confident that there may be other arrests in the future and, as always, we would appeal to anyone who has been a victim of abuse to speak to police, carers or the health authorities. Your information will be treated seriously and in confidence.â€
On Wednesday 9th May, eight other men were sentenced to a total of 77 years in prison as part Greater Manchester Police’s largest ever investigation into child sexual exploitation.
The operation was led by the force's Public Protection Division, assisted by the Major Incident Team and Rochdale division. It focused on allegations that five teenage girls in Rochdale were sexually exploited by 11 men over a number of years.
Police are still hunting Mohammed Shahzad, 40, who is wanted for rape, and has not been seen since 15th June last year.
Ahmed will be sentenced for the further offences on Thursday 2nd August.
