Man denies sex offences against vulnerable girls in Rotherham

LONDON: A man accused of a string of sex offences against vulnerable teenage girls has denied the allegations, telling a court: “It’s not them telling the truth, it’s me”.

Abid Saddiq, 38, is one of six men currently on trial at Sheffield Crown Court over allegations they abused girls in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, between 1998 and 2002. Over the last month, jurors have been told how the men are accused of offences including rape, indecent assault and child abduction against seven schoolgirls.

But Saddiq, a father-of-four, said he only had sex with some of the complainants, saying they were overage at the time and consented. He told the court: “I do not know what they have against me.”

Summing up the case, Judge Michael Slater explained how one complainant was aged 14 or 15 when she was allegedly taken down an alleyway and raped by Saddiq, with the defendant supposedly then taunting her mother about the incident. The judge read out the complainant’s interview with police from 2016, with her describing Saddiq as “so ugly” and “dopey Abid”.

During his summing up on Friday, the judge said that the defendant had denied the allegations against him when he was called as a witness earlier in the trial. The judge quoted Saddiq as saying of the complainants during his evidence: “I had nothing to do with any of them until they were over 18. “It’s not them telling the truth, it’s me.”

Saddiq, from Rotherham, faces two counts of rape, five of indecent assault, and two of child abduction. Sharaz Hussain, 35, of Fitzwilliam Road, Rotherham, and Masaued Malik, 35, are charged with four and three counts of indecent assault respectively.

Meanwhile, Aftab Hussain, 40, is accused of two counts of indecent assault. The final two defendants cannot be named for legal reasons, with one facing a charge of rape and three of indecent assault, and the other on trial for one count of indecent assault and two of child abduction.

The men deny the offences. The jury is not expected to be sent out to start deliberating until next week, and the trial continues.