Freed Rochdale grooming gang leader was judged ‘high risk’ to children in 2023

Shabir Ahmed, 73, was freed from HMP Leeds on Thursday despite three failed attempts to secure parole. Photograph: Greater Manchester police/PA View image in fullscreen Shabir Ahmed, 73, was freed from HMP Leeds on Thursday despite three failed attempts to secure parole. Photograph: Greater Manchester police/PA Freed Rochdale grooming gang leader was judged ‘high risk’ to children in 2023 Exclusive: Shabir Ahmed, jailed in 2012 for rape, abuse and trafficking of girls, was deemed three years ago to present ‘high risk of sexual offending’ The leader of the Rochdale grooming gang was deemed to pose a “very high risk of serious harm” towards children just three years ago, the Guardian can reveal. Shabir Ahmed, 73, was freed from HMP Leeds on Thursday despite three failed attempts to secure parole, the most recent of which was in October 2024. One document, relating to a previous review in 2023, shows Ahmed was seen to present a “high risk of sexual offending”. One of his victims, Amber*, said she had been left feeling “physically sick” and unable to sleep as she considered the ongoing danger posed by Ahmed and his contacts. Amber was one of about 50 girls who were raped, abused and trafficked by Ahmed and his associates from about 2008. A judge said they had been treated “as though they were worthless and beyond any respect” because they were not part of the same community or religion as the offenders, who were mainly of Pakistani heritage. Although government sources said attempts had been made to inform victims prior to Ahmed’s release, Amber said she had had no contact from the police, the Prison Service or victim support and found out via a message from a friend with a link to a news story. “I think it said something like ‘predator to be released’, and I was like what the hell, where the hell did this come from?” Amber said. “And then obviously now all over social media, it’s everywhere, and I’m just trying to avoid that.” Ahmed, who asked his victims to call him “daddy”, was jailed for 22 years in 2012 after being convicted of rape and sexual abuse charges spanning two separate trials. Ahmed was stripped off his British citizenship after his convictions and his victims were initially told he would be deported to his native Pakistan. However, because he came to the UK before 1971 and lived in the country for more than five years, the government cannot legally remove him. Andy Burnham, widely expected to be the next prime minister, has said he will explore “all possible options” to close this legal loophole. Parole Board documents seen by the Guardian show Ahmed made repeated attempts to secure early release from prison after becoming eligible in 2022. On each occasion, an expert panel concluded he could not be safely managed in the community due to his denial of his crimes and his failure to engage with programmes designed to address his offending. The first review, in January 2022, concluded Ahmed had “not sufficiently” reduced the risk factors