Four guilty after girl, 16, raped and exploited by gang

Four men have been found guilty after a teenage girl was raped and sexually exploited.

Arqash Zaffar, Shiraz Nassir, Mohammed Nadim and Shaban Arif were convicted for their part in assaulting the 16-year-old girl during a “horrific ordeal”, said West Midlands police.

Zaffar and Nassir were found guilty of rape, Nadim of sexual assault and Arif of facilitating travel for sexual exploitation.

Police said the girl was assaulted several times by the group after being picked up in Birmingham, before being taken to Denton, Greater Manchester, and Walsall where she was raped by the pair and other unknown men.

Zaffar and Nadim targeted the girl while she was waiting for the bus on Alum Rock Road in Birmingham, with Zaffar asking for her number.

She declined and got on the bus – but days later the men targeted her again and persuaded her to get in the car offering her a lift to the city centre.

Police said instead Zaffar drove her to a secluded area where both he and Nadim sexually assaulted in the back of the car.

They picked up Arif before driving the teenager to the home of Nassir in Denton, where she was raped by Zaffar and Nassir.

The girl reported being taken back to a hotel room in Walsall where she was abused further by Zaffar.

She was driven to Birmingham, where Zaffar offered a friend the hotel room key and to stay with the girl – but the friend declined.

Later that evening she reported being taken back to the room where four other unknown men raped her one after another.

West Midlands Police said Arif provided false information when booking the room, but provided his name, vehicle registration and driving licence which later helped with the investigation.

Officers said they were able to identify the convicted men involved through phone use, hotel bookings, vehicle and insurance details, and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) records.

• Zaffar, aged 41, of Persehouse Street, Walsall, was found guilty of five counts of rape, causing the child to engage in sexual activity without consent on four occasions and also facilitating travel with a view to sexually exploit the child.
• Nassir, 40, of Fir Road, Denton, was found guilty of rape.
• Nadim, 45, of Holtshill Lane, Walsall, was found guilty of sexual assault.
• Arif, 42, of Holden Crescent, Walsall, was found guilty of facilitating travel of the child with a view of sexual exploitation.

Det Con Stewart Garratt commended the victim for her bravery.

He said: “This has been a complex investigation, it involved a number of inquiries, working in partnership with other agencies and importantly support for this child, she is commended for her bravery, I’m so pleased with these convictions for her in particular.”

“These males took advantage of a clearly vulnerable teenager. What she experienced was deeply traumatic.

“She found the strength to report this and specialist child abuse officers worked extremely hard to identify these men, and in doing so have got justice for her.”

All defendants have been remanded in custody and will appear at Birmingham Crown Court on 19th March 2026 for sentencing.