Shropshire Star

Star comment: No justice for victims of pervert

A man who has served less than a quarter of a jail sentence for sexually grooming young girls is to be released from jail.

Published
Mubarek Ali

It is utterly remarkable that Mubarek Ali will be free to return to the streets where he once preyed on innocent and vulnerable children.

The sex offender was imprisoned following Operation Chalice, which sought justice for girls who were targeted by immoral, base men.

He was one of two leaders of a gang that preyed on girls as young as 13.

The Star revealed on Saturday that, despite receiving a 22-year sentence, he could be released on licence in November. It is astonishing and will lead to enormous trauma for his victims, a concern today raised by the NSPCC.

The issue of gangs targeting young girls was not confined just to Telford. Other, separate, unconnected groups of men in different parts of the country also found ways to exploit children.

Some used drink and drugs, some used coercion, others used violence and other crass means.

Their aims were clear; to obtain sexual gratification from under-age children who were not equipped to defend themselves or escape the web that men like Ali span.

The effects of their abuse will be lifelong. Their experiences will affect every aspect of their lives.

Their adulthood will be tainted, their own relationships more complicated, their ability to lead productive lives made more difficult.

The trust that they once may have had in others was irreversibly and irrevocably shattered.

Telford MP Lucy Allen has stepped into the row and written an open letter, expressing her disgust. She is quite right to do so. She has taken a principled stand on behalf of the victims and it is one that we support.

The notion that a sexual predator can be released from jail after serving less than 23 per cent of his sentence is truly astonishing. It sends the wrong message to perpetrators or would-be perpetrators.

It paints the law and the justice system as being soft. It devalues the emotions and worth of victims. And it tells our communities that the police and justice system do not have the ability to keep them safe.

No meaningful comment can be made on Mubarek’s present state of mind. Evidence on any form of rehabilitation has not been made public.

But even if he lives a law-abiding and peaceful life hereafter, his victims will find it difficult to rest.

The horror they might feel were they to bump into him on the streets of Telford or Wellington can only be imagined. The unhappy memories it will bring about can but be guessed at.

One of the key issues surrounding the grooming of young girls was that the complainants were not taken seriously.

Police and other agencies had numerous opportunities to put the abuse to an end. They could have stopped the likes of Mubarek far more quickly, had they believed the complaints that were being made.

And yet too many girls – across the UK, and not just in Telford – were ignored, were not believed, were discredited by the inaction of police. The fact that officers and those charged with protecting the welfare of children failed to take them seriously will still rankle for many.

And the soft approach to Mubarek will simple reinforce that sense of injustice. The police and courts took too long to bring the pernicious sexual abuse of children to an end.

And now the justice system is being too lenient in disregarding the fears of people who were victims of abuse.

The Telford MP has raised an important issue. She will have the support of all in our communities.

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