Mubarek Ali, 41, convicted child sex trafficker and leader of the UK’s most notorious grooming gang, received an additional 12-year prison sentence on Monday. The sentence stemmed from further crimes uncovered more than a decade after his initial conviction. Ali, sentenced to 14 years in 2012 on charges of abusing and trafficking teenage girls, faced the court again after a new victim came forward.
Ali, along with his brother Ahdel “Eddie” Ali, led a gang in Telford, Shropshire, England. They preyed on up to 100 young girls between 2006 and 2009. The gang controlled the girls, some as young as 13, through alcohol, food, and money. It exploited them as child prostitutes and systematically coerced them into sexual activity with numerous men.
During the proceedings on May 20 at Shrewsbury Crown Court, Judge Peter Barrie underscored Ali’s continued threat to society. Additionally, the judge highlighted the manipulative methods Ali used to groom his victim, describing in horrific detail how Ali exploited his victim.
“You met her at this house where young people used to go. There was alcohol and cannabis available and shared. You struck up a relationship with her. She did not have the maturity or experience to understand what was going on,” Barrie said. “You made her have sex with you in different places, in different ways and with different people,” he continued. “You took advantage of the hold you had over her to get her to have sex with other men.”
Grooming gangs have plagued the UK. Made up predominately of Muslims, they prey primarily on white British girls. A report released earlier this year identified systemic failures in the police response to such gangs, noting that white British girls were “left at the mercy” of rapists.
