The men, all from Oldham and Rochdale, groomed the young girls, with one being as a young as 13.
The men, all from Oldham and Rochdale, groomed the young girls, with one being as a young as 13. BBC

The nine men being tried for sexual exploitation charges on a series of underage girls in Rochdale have been found guilty.

The men, all from Oldham and Rochdale, groomed the young girls, with one being as a young as 13.

The jury at Liverpool Crown Court convicted them for their part in a child sexual exploitation ring centring on Heywood, Greater Manchester.

The exploitation was investigated in 2008 but police failed to find evidence against the men, resulting in a further two years of abuse.

All nine men passed their victims around to friends and family after plying them with drink and drugs in order to use them for sex.

A drawn out and harrowing trial had the girls explain their ordeals, most of which happened in a takeaway restaurant in Rochdale.

One girl, who was 13 at the time, told the court: "He [a 59-year-old man] told me to get on the bed and have sex with him. I said 'No' but he said 'I have just given you vodka so it is part of the deal - I have done something for you so you have to do something for me.

"He pulled his pants down and I said I don't want to do it but he just carried on.

"He was just saying, 'Please, please, we are good friends.' I was crying while he was doing it but he just ignored me. He started saying 'Don't cry, I love you' and all this."

She added: "Afterwards I went downstairs and he said 'Have you been crying?' and I said 'Yes'. He said: 'I love you, when can I make love to you again?' and I said 'Never'."

The girl recalled that the man instantly raped her again before giving her £40 to keep quiet about it.

The court heard that the girls only knew their attackers by nicknames they gave themselves, such as "Master" and "Tiger".

The men denied all charges but nine of the eleven men on trial have now been found guilty the offences included rape, trafficking girls for sex and conspiracy to engage in sexual activity with a child

Two men, Qamar Shazad and Liaquat Shah were acquitted.