UK child exploitation case: Indian-origin man among five convicted in Wales

London,UPDATED: Aug 4, 2026 20:38 IST

An Indian-origin man was among five members of a gang convicted in the UK after a major child sexual exploitation investigation into crimes committed over more than four years. Jaswinder Singh, 61, was found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to traffic and one count of supplying cannabis at the end of a three-month trial at Caernarfon Crown Court in Wales on Monday.

North Wales Police said the convictions relate to the exploitation and abuse of three teenage girls in Rhyl and the surrounding area between April 2022 and March 2024. In a unanimous verdict, the jury found all five accused guilty of more than 40 offences after hearing evidence of rape, sexual assault, child sexual exploitation, modern-day slavery offences, drug supply and attempts to obstruct justice.

According to police, the victims were aged 14 to 16 when they were abused by adults. Detective Chief Inspector Richard Sidney, the senior investigating officer, said: "They were children, aged just 14 to 16, when they were subjected to exploitation and abuse by adults who took advantage of their vulnerabilities and sought to manipulate and control them for their own gain."

He added: "No child should have to experience what these young women endured. The impact of child sexual exploitation can be profound and long-lasting, and the harm caused by these offences cannot be understated. "Today's verdicts represent an important step towards accountability and justice. While no court outcome can undo the trauma these young women have experienced, I hope this result offers some measure of recognition of the harm done to them."

The offences took place in cars, residential addresses and business premises in the Denbighshire area of Wales. North Wales Police detectives reviewed all offences as part of linked investigations named Operation Embank and Operation Zirconium, which targeted those involved in child sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

The accused, who included men of Pakistani heritage, had denied the charges and maintained their innocence throughout the proceedings. DCI Sidney said: "Mustafa Iqbal, Mohamed Usman Arshad, Ziaullah Badshah, Jaswinder Singh and Sarah Gray, denied almost every allegation against them from the outset. Rather than accepting responsibility for the appalling harm they caused, they forced these young women to endure the additional trauma of a lengthy trial, requiring them to relive their experiences in a courtroom. I hope today's outcome sends a clear message that those who seek to groom and exploit vulnerable children will be relentlessly pursued."

Mustafa Iqbal, 43, was found guilty of four counts of rape, three counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour, three counts of sexual assault, three counts of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, conspiracy to supply cannabis, conspiracy to supply cocaine, supplying cannabis, arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, and breaching a slavery or trafficking risk order. Mohamed Usman Arshad, 36, was found guilty of three counts of rape, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour, and supplying cannabis. Ziaullah Badshah, 25, was found guilty of two counts of rape, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour and supplying cannabis. Sarah Gray, 53, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice, assisting an offender, conspiracy to supply cocaine and conspiracy to supply cannabis.

Singh, Iqbal, Arshad and Badshah have been remanded in judicial custody, while Gray has been granted bail until the sentencing hearing at Caernarfon Crown Court on September 25. The case centres on the exploitation and abuse of three teenage girls, with all five accused convicted after a lengthy trial.

With PTI Inputs

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