Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Friday 15 May 2026 by Jill Powell

A former imam who carried out a sustained campaign of sexual abuse against women and girls over more than a decade has been jailed.

Abdul Halim Khan, 54, was sentenced to life imprisonment to serve a minimum term of 20 years at Snaresbrook Crown Court today, Thursday 14 May.

He was convicted of 21 offences, including rape, sexual assault and child sexual offences, against seven women and girls between 2004 and 2015.

Melissa Garner, Specialist Prosecutor at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: 

“Abdul Halim Khan abused his position as a trusted religious leader to prey on women and girls over many years, manipulating and controlling them for his own sexual gratification. He used their deeply held beliefs to instil fear and silence them, making them believe their families would be at risk if they ever spoke out. I hope this prosecution sends a clear message that the Crown Prosecution Service will work tirelessly to protect women and girls and bring anyone who commits these appalling crimes to justice.”

Khan was an imam at a mosque in east London and used his position as a trusted religious leader within the community to gain access to his victims and manipulate them.  

He arranged meetings in isolated locations, and even their own homes, where he sexually abused victims under the false pretence of being possessed or disguised as a jinn (supernatural spirit).  

Victims were led to believe that harm would come to them or their families through so-called black magic if they reported the abuse, leaving them feeling unable to come forward for years.  

During the investigation, further victims were identified after the initial reports were made.

Prosecutors worked closely with the Metropolitan Police to build a case spanning more than a decade of offending.

Detective Chief Inspector Jennie Ronan, whose team led the investigation, said“Abdul Khan presented himself as a respectable man who could be trusted. However, this was far from the truth, and he instead preyed upon and took advantage of others. I want to focus on the victim-survivors, who have shown remarkable bravery in reporting Khan and great strength throughout the trial.

"We hope that today’s outcome provides as a measure of comfort as they continue to rebuild their lives and serves as a reminder to anyone who has experienced sexual violence that support is available. We remain absolutely committed to tackling violence against women and girls, targeting dangerous offenders and removing them from London’s streets.”

To support the jury’s understanding of complex evidence involving spiritual beliefs - including references to jinn and black magic, the CPS instructed a cultural expert to provide essential context central to the case.

Special measures were put in place to support the victims to give their best evidence, including pre-recorded cross-examination in advance of the trial.

The CPS has established a dedicated Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit to prosecute complex and challenging cases like this, sharing specialist understanding, helping to build strong cases and increase the number of successful prosecutions. 

Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Wednesday 13 May 2026 by Jill Powell

A child abuser who attempted to evade justice by faking severe illness has been sentenced after the Crown Prosecution Service and police combined to prove he was lying about his condition.

John Siddell, 41, from Ashington in Northumberland, abused three young boys under the age of 14 between 2018 and 2021 while he was living in Leicestershire.

The boys, supported by family members, came forward to report the abuse in 2022. Siddell, aided by his brother James, presented in his police interviews as unable to walk or talk. He implied he had suffered a stroke and could therefore not have committed the offences due to his disability.

Siddell continued to present at court and at appointments to assess his fitness to take part in court proceedings in this way, eventually persuading court professionals that he was unfit to take part in a trial.

As is normal in these circumstances, the court heard the evidence in a fact finding hearing and a jury determined on the basis of the evidence from the victims that Siddell had committed the abuse against the victims.

The CPS prosecutor in the case and the detective in charge of the investigations were suspicious of Siddell’s claims, so the CPS offered to provide the court with an additional report to assist with the conclusion of the case.

This report revealed that Siddell was faking his disability and that James Siddell was complicit in the deception.

The CPS reinstated criminal proceedings in relation to the abuse. After investigations by Leicestershire and Northumbria police forces into their claims that Siddell was disabled, the CPS charged both John and James Siddell with perverting the course of justice.

At a trial at Leicester Crown Court, John Siddell was found guilty of the sexual abuse and both were convicted of perverting the course of justice. At Leicester Crown Court on Tuesday 12 May, John Siddell was sentenced to a total of 15 years imprisonment with an extended licence of two years and James Siddell sentenced to 33 months imprisonment. John Siddell was made the subject of a 20-year sexual harm prevention order.

Nicola Potts of the Crown Prosecution Service said:

“While much of the attention in this case will be the lies and antics of the Siddell brothers, at the heart of this are three victims of sexual abuse who had their childhood snatched from them by John Sidell’s cruel manipulation. His cynical lies and the support he received from James was a further insult to these victims.

“Our dedication to giving these victims the justice they deserved has been absolute. These defendants thought they could trick their way out of justice, but John Siddell has been exposed as a cynical, dishonest predator and James Siddell for his complicity in his brother’s criminal activities. They have faced the full force of the law for their vile offending.”

Building the case – exposing lies in court

This case had two significant elements to it. Evidence of the abuse of the three victims was clear. Each gave compelling accounts of the occasions they had encountered John Siddell and the abuse he inflicted on them.

The CPS secured the personal accounts from the victims about what had happened to them using a pre-recorded video interview. The victims were also allowed by the court to be cross-examined on their evidence in a pre-recorded video format. This helped these vulnerable victims give their best evidence without having to do it in a court hearing.

Siddell did not offer an alternative account. Instead of denying the allegation, he refused to respond, pretending he could not move. He attended his interviews in a wheelchair with his head on one side, while James Siddell asserted that he had suffered a stroke and could not have committed the abuse due to his severe mobility issues.

The defendants made this claim to the court, who found Siddell unfit to plead and held a fact-finding hearing. As Siddell was considered unable to take part in criminal proceedings, the court had to consider how to conclude the case and considered either a discharge or a supervision order. The CPS prosecutor and the officer in the case were monitoring the case closely and had suspicions about the truth of the Siddells’ assertions.

When James Siddell put himself forward as John Siddell’s supervisor, the CPS prosecutor and the officer in the case became even more suspicious and believed there could be a risk to future victims if Siddell was not as severely impaired as he claimed. The CPS offered the court to secure an additional report to assist with the suitability of the options open to the court. That report concluded that there was a strong possibility that Siddell was faking his disability.

It is one thing to have suspicions, but proving that a defendant is faking a disability requires a high standard of evidence. The CPS prosecutor and the officer in the case worked together to gather the evidence needed. Statements from people the brothers knew revealed that they were regularly out socialising and interacting with other people.

The prosecution team secured video evidence of Siddell walking and socialising, including footage from his own Ring doorbell of him doing domestic chores, footage of him out socialising at his local working men’s club and a clip of him using his wheelchair to transport household goods.

Police footage showed him adjusting clothing and moving independently when he was in police custody thinking nobody was looking.

On the basis of this evidence, the CPS decided he should face full criminal charges for abusing the victims and that he and James Siddell should be charged with perverting the course of justice.

The attempts at deception continued right up to the trial. Siddell claimed he could not get into court in his wheelchair, so could not get in to his own court hearing. As a response to this further claim, the police secured video footage of him getting into the prison van unassisted that same morning for the prosecution to show the court. He was brought into court and the trial proceeded.

Source: Department for Education published on this website Thursday 14 May 2026 by Jill Powell

New fund aims to make fostering more accessible and support more people to become carers, as part of wider drive to create 10,000 new foster places.

Thousands more children and young people will benefit from stable, loving homes as the government launches a new £12.4 million Fostering Innovation Fund to make foster care more accessible and inclusive across England.

The Fund will help fostering around modern lifestyles and household structures, by updating models of foster care, which set out how care should be delivered. 

For too long, foster care has been provided on the assumption that people need to be in traditional, married relationships with only one carer working full time to be successful. The Department for Education reforms aim to attract a younger and more diverse mixture of carers as well as improving the experience of fostering for existing carers.

The new fund will support the modernisation of the foster care system, enabling more flexibility in how care is provided, without compromising on safeguarding standards. Fostering helps to give vulnerable young people the best possible start in life, breaking the link between background and opportunity.

The funding will be allocated to Regional Care Co-operatives and fostering hubs, which are operated by Local Authorities. They will be collaborating with a range of partners, potentially including children’s charities and commercial providers to develop and trial innovative new models of foster care 

Children’s Minister Josh MacAlister said:

“Every child deserves the chance to grow up in a safe and loving home, and I’ve been truly inspired by the foster carers I have met who make that happen. This investment will help us bring fostering into the 21st century, moving on from outdated assumptions about who can foster and how care should be offered and opening it up to a wider range of people. This will help us recruit more carers, and change more children’s lives by giving them a stable home.”

Innovation in the fostering sector is already being driven forward in many parts of England. For example, a foster carer with four years’ experience in Manchester was previously limited to one placement due to space constraints in her home. With a £7,800 grant provided through the local Room Makers scheme run by Greater Manchester Combined Authority, she reconfigured her home and will soon welcome siblings.

Other new forms of care being trialled by some organisations include respite or weekend-only fostering, whereby children spend time with foster carers at weekends or for shorter periods during a week. This can support other forms of long-term care, such as a child in a residential care home or being looked after by extended family members.  

These innovative approaches can improve outcomes for children and families and make fostering more appealing to a wider range of people.

Launched during Foster Care Fortnight, the Fund will help Fostering Hubs and Regional Care Cooperatives to expand successful fostering programmes and trial new ways of supporting foster families and children.

This includes opportunities to form partnerships between organisations so they can more effectively test and develop new approaches.

The investment forms part of the government’s wider plans to reform and expand foster care, creating 10,000 additional foster care places over the course of this Parliament.

The fund was first announced in February as part of the government’s Fostering Action Plan, which set out measures to make fostering more flexible, improve support for carers, and update local authority decision-making processes on who can become a foster carer.

The funding will support projects designed to improve outcomes for children and young people, including initiatives aimed at preventing children from entering residential care unnecessarily and helping them remain in family-based settings wherever possible.

The launch forms part of wider activity planned during Foster Care Fortnight, to raise awareness of fostering and encourage more people to consider becoming foster carers.

Successful applicants to the fund are expected to be announced later this summer following the close of the application process.

Source: Cambridgeshire Police published on this website Tuesday 12 May 2026 by Jill Powell

A man who assaulted his partner numerous times and smashed up her home has been jailed.

Liam Thrower, 32, turned up at the woman’s house in Arbury, Cambridge, at about 6.10am on 2 November last year and punched her as well as taking her phone and house keys.

He also tackled her to the floor and put his arm over her mouth but the victim managed to escape and hide in a bin store until officers arrived.

Thrower also ripped out a cooker and damaged a TV unit.

The victim told officers that between June and October last year, Thrower had smashed her mobile phone, punched her on multiple occasions, grabbed her by the throat, dragged her by her hair and smashed her TV. 

On Friday, 1 May, at Cambridge Crown Court, Thrower, of no fixed address, was jailed for 22 weeks, having pleaded guilty to three counts of criminal damage, three counts of assault by beating and one count of common assault. 

DC Patrick Sopp, who investigated, said: “Thrower subjected his partner to four months of appalling behaviour, with multiple assaults and damaging her property, so it’s great he’s now been brought to justice.”