Man who raped two teenage girls before subjecting one to nearly two decades of abuse has been jailed for 33 years

A Rochdale man has been jailed for 33 years after being found guilty of 31 sexual offences, including raping two teenage girls and subjecting one to nearly two decades of abuse.

Mohammed Saleem, 47, has today (25 February) been jailed at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court for 33 years following a six-week trial in which he was found guilty of 31 offences including:

• Six counts of indecent assault against a 14-year-old female
• Rape of a 14-year-old female
• Three counts of rape of a 14/15-year-old female
• Indecent assault against a 15-year-old female
• Assault occasioning actual bodily harm
• Nine counts of rape of a female
• Assault by penetration
• Three counts of rape of a female under 16 years
• Two counts of voyeurism
• Sexual assault
• Securing unauthorised access to computer material
• Two counts of making indecent images of a child

The charges relate to the non-recent exploitation, rape, indecent assault and domestic abuse of two teenage girls in Rochdale, which continued for 17 years for one of the victims.

The court heard how Saleem groomed the two teenage girls in the late 1990s and would regularly ply them with alcohol and cannabis before this progressed to having sex with both of them.

Over the next 17 years Saleem, who was married and had children at the time, then repeatedly abused one of the girls both sexually, physically and mentally, in an attempt to control every aspect of her life.

Across the years her mental health deteriorated significantly and she did manage to escape Saleem's grip and live independently but he would always manage to get back into her life and monitor and control her.

In November 2017 officers executed a warrant at Saleem's address and uncovered a number of indecent images and videos of children, including images of the victim that he had taken. It was also revealed that Saleem had installed spying software on the victim's computer without her knowledge in order to monitor her internet activity, personal data and emails.

Detective Constable Sarah Hayfield of GMP's Rochdale district, said: "The victims in this case were abused in the worst ways possible. This man preyed on their vulnerabilities as young girls and exploited them for his own sickening pleasure. He then went on to control and abuse one of the victims for 17 years.

"This was a horrific ordeal that has no doubt left a damaging and haunting impact on those lives affected. I want to extend my thanks and gratitude to these two brave women and their families for their support and strength throughout this investigation. Their resilience has been instrumental in ensuring we could secure this custodial sentence and, although I have no doubt this will stay with them for the rest of their lives, I hope today will help bring some form of closure.

"I also extend my thanks to our partners at Rochdale Borough Council, particularly their adult care recovery and re-enablement team, who have both supported the investigation and been instrumental in providing the victims with the care and support they need whilst we investigated Saleem.

"I hope this sentencing sends a clear message that child sexual exploitation and domestic abuse is abhorrent and will never be acceptable and through our joint working with the council on child sexual abuse we will ensure anyone who engages in this type of vile behaviour will be brought to justice, as we have seen today."

Councillor Rachel Massey, cabinet member for children’s services at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Through our joint work with police we are actively pursuing perpetrators of historic abuse, as this successful sentencing shows.

“Our multi-agency complex safeguarding team are working tirelessly on current and historical abuse claims and holding perpetrators to account and face justice. This case has been long and challenging but with the dedication of our complex safeguarding team, our adult support services and most importantly the victims, we see this vile predator put behind bars.

“We urge all victims of abuse to come forward, like these brave women did. We’re here to listen, to support you and do everything we can to bring some justice.”

Councillor Iftikhar Ahmed, cabinet member for adult care at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “This was a truly horrific case and my thoughts are with the victims, who were subjected to such barbaric and heinous crimes over a long period of time.

“ Thanks to the tireless work of our multi-agency safeguarding team, justice has been done and this predator is where he belongs, behind bars for a very long time.  As cabinet member for adult care, I would like to praise the work of the recovery and re-enablement team, who supported the investigation and were instrumental in providing the victims with the care, support and help they need.

“Our message is clear, if you have committed a crime there is no hiding place, our team is working round the clock to find you and bring you to justice. As such, we would urge all victims to come forward. We are here to listen, support and ensure justice is done. The protection and wellbeing vulnerable people is always our priority.”

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If you or someone you know has been raped or sexually assaulted, we encourage you not to suffer in silence and report it to the police, or a support agency so you can get the help and support available.

- Saint Mary's Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Manchester provides a comprehensive and co-ordinated response to men, women and children who live or have been sexually assaulted within Greater Manchester. They offer forensic medical examinations, practical and emotional support as well as a counselling service for all ages. Services are available on a 24-hour basis and can be accessed by calling 0161 276 6515.

- Greater Manchester Rape Crisis is a confidential information, support and counselling service run by women for women over 18 who have been raped or sexually abused at any time in their lives. Call on 0161 273 4500 or email help@manchesterrapecrisis.co.uk