Man Who Raped, Controlled Teen Girl For 17 Years Jailed

A 47-year-old man in England has been sentenced to 33 years in prison for grooming and raping two teenage girls.

Mohammed Saleem, of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, was handed the sentence Friday at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court after being found guilty of 31 offenses following a six-week trial, LancsLive reported.

Saleem was charged with a long list of offenses after he exploited, raped and abused two unidentified teenage girls in Rochdale. He abused one of his victims for 17 years.

It was not clear if Saleem and the victims were known to each other before the abuse began.

Saleem was convicted of six counts of indecent assault against a 14-year-old female, rape of a 14-year-old female, three counts of rape of a 14/15-year-old female, indecent assault against a 15-year-old female and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

The man was also found guilty of nine counts of rape of a female, three counts of rape of a female under 16 years, two counts of voyeurism, two counts of making indecent images of a child and one count each of sexual assault, assault by penetration and securing unauthorized access to computer material.

Saleem groomed the two teenage girls in the late 1990s and regularly plied them with alcohol and cannabis, prosecutors said. This later progressed to having sex with the two victims, the court heard.

Saleem, who was married and had children at the time, then continued to repeatedly abuse one of the girls sexually, physically and mentally over the next 17 years in an attempt to control every aspect of her life.

The girl's mental health deteriorated, and when she did manage to escape from Saleem and live independently, the man would always find a way to get back into her life and control her, according to prosecutors.

It was only in 2017 when authorities were able to execute a warrant to search Saleem’s home. Authorities found indecent images and videos of children, including images of the victim that he had taken, at the address.

Further, investigators also discovered that Saleem had installed spying software on the computer of the victim without her knowledge. Saleem was able to monitor the victim's internet activity, personal data and emails.

"The victims in this case were abused in the worst ways possible. This man preyed on their vulnerabilities as young girls and exploited them for his own sickening pleasure. He then went on to control and abuse one of the victims for 17 years," Detective Constable Sarah Hayfield of GMP's Rochdale district said in a statement obtained by the Oldham Times.

Hayfield continued, "I hope this sentencing sends a clear message that child sexual exploitation and domestic abuse is abhorrent and will never be acceptable and through our joint working with the council on child sexual abuse we will ensure anyone who engages in this type of vile behavior will be brought to justice, as we have seen today."