𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

A terrified victim of notorious grooming gang ringleader Shabir Ahmed declared she fears for her children’s safety as he is set to be released from prison today. Ruby, who was raped more than 100 times, said Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood should rewrite deportation laws to boot out the Pakistani paedophile.

Ahmed will have served 14 of his 22-year sentence behind bars. And he will not be sent back to Pakistan because of a 50-year-old loophole. Commonwealth citizens who arrived before 1973 cannot be booted out if they have lived in the UK continuously for five years.

And Andy Burnham, who is set to become Prime Minister within weeks, hinted he could look at visa bans if Pakistan refuses to take back its citizens.

Keir Starmer has faced similar demands from critics.

Mr Burnham said: “Like everyone, I want this vile criminal out of the country. Victims must come first.

“I will ask the Home and Foreign Secretaries to review all possible options – and they should consider nothing is off the table.“

Ruby said: “There are thousands of victims in the UK who are not being heard or supported because of the actions of the Government.

“The system is broken, yet they blame it on mental health, when our mental health is so messed up because of how victims are treated – again, with no support when abusers are released from prison. Victims are left to fend for themselves because there is no support.

“On the Immigration Act 1971 – why are we still relying on legislation from over 50 years ago, when it is now 2026? We need these laws to be updated. Laws need to change, and victims need to be heard.”

And the survivor said she is still being failed by the Government.

She told the BBC: “Twenty years on – broken victims because of a broken system – things need to change.

“There has been no support for the victims of the abuse, and the offender is being released from prison on Thursday. There is no team of people in place – despite the Government saying there would be a dedicated team for victims – and that has not been done.

“There are broken victims because of a broken system. I am scared for my safety and my children’s safety. The main ringleader, who is well known in Rochdale, Oldham and Middleton, is being released from prison. Even if he is not in those areas, he still knows people and could contact them, which makes me feel unsafe.”

Another victim said: “The release of Shabir Ahmed from prison has had a profound and debilitating impact on my life.

“I live in a constant state of hypervigilance, fearing for my physical safety every time I leave my home.

“This fear has caused severe anxiety, disrupted my sleep, and forced me to drastically alter my daily routines and social life simply to avoid a potential confrontation.

“The psychological toll is exhausting, and I feel unable to live freely or safely while this individual poses an unmonitored risk to my wellbeing.”

Two other key figures in the Rochdale grooming gang – Qari Abdul Rauf and Adil Khan – have not been deported.

All three were stripped of their British citizenship after being convicted as ringleaders of the gang who sexually assaulted 47 girls over two years.

The fiends raped girls as young as 12 after plying them with alcohol and drugs in rooms above takeaway shops and ferried them to different flats in taxis, where cash was paid to use the girls for sex.

Ruby said: “Adil Khan has absconded, and there have been no updates since – again, no support for the victims. There are always false promises which the Government never delivers.”

In 2022, Andy Burnham, likely to replace Sir Keir Starmer as the next prime minister, called on the Tory Government “to do everything within … the Government’s power” to deport grooming gang members.

Probation chiefs have ordered Ahmed to initially live in a property under 24/7 monitoring.

And he has been banned from entering Rochdale. The vile predator will also be forced to wear an electronic tag tracking his every move and subjected to “strict curfews”.

During his trial, Ahmed called the judge a “racist bastard” and took his case to the European Court of Human Rights, claiming he did not get a fair trial.

Nazir Afzal, the former chief prosecutor who led efforts to lock up Ahmed, said: “After his conviction, I expected him to be deported at the end of his sentence – I looked him in the eye and saw not an ounce of remorse – the Home Office needs to find a way – it’s what his victims deserve.”

Ruby said she told teachers, social workers and sexual health workers of her abuse nearly every day for years.

She claims none of them batted an eyelid when she spoke about her 43-year-old boyfriend and her experiences of gang rapes and sex trafficking.

In fact, she says sexual health workers even offered her different condom flavours ahead of “nights out”.

Judge Gerald Clifton said victims were treated “as though they were worthless and beyond any respect” because they were not part of the gang’s community or religion.

Greater Manchester Police said at the time there was no “racial or cultural” element to the crimes.

A report later found that police did not act despite multiple concerns being raised, citing “serious multiple failures” by police and local authorities.

Former GMP officer and campaigner Maggie Oliver said: “Ruby is quite right that we are looking to a law that is 50 years old to prevent these men from being deported. They were given promises that these men would go and that is not happening.

“The same conditions applied to the man who got Ruby pregnant when she was just 13. He was out of prison in less than four years. He too, was on restrictions and being monitored. He has absconded from the country.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are first and foremost with the victims of these appalling crimes.

“Ahmed’s horrific crimes were at the heart of the grooming gangs scandal that represents one of the darkest moments in our country’s history.

“The most vulnerable people were abused and exploited at the hands of evil child rapists and must face the full force of the law.

“On his release, he will be on the sex offenders’ register for life, ordered to stay away from his victims and banned from contacting any child or young person.

“As well as facing strict curfews and restriction zones, his every movement will be tracked, and he will be forced to wear an electronic tag.

“Should he breach his conditions, he will be immediately locked up.”