Source: Metropolitan Police published on this website Wednesday 18 June 2025 by Jill Powell

Former nursery worker found guilty of child cruelty against children in her care. A 22-year-old nursery worker has been found guilty of 21 counts of child cruelty after she abused multiple children in her care.

Roksana Helena Lecka, 22 of Avro Place, Hounslow appeared at Kingston Crown Court on Monday, 16 June, where following a six-week-trial was found guilty of 21 counts of child cruelty.

She was brought to justice after a Met investigation found Lecka had abused children as young as ten months at two separate nurseries in Twickenham and Hounslow between October 2023 and June 2024. Met Officers first began investigating Lecka in June 2024, following concerns from a diligent staff member at the nursery about Lecka’s behaviour.

Investigators unveiled shocking CCTV footage which showed Lecka repeatedly pinching the children and roughly placing them on the floor causing the victims to be cry and appear distressed. The footage also showed Lecka vaping less than a metre from a small baby on more than one occasion. Met Police officers were called to the location and reviewed over 45 hours of CCTV from 28 June 2024.

Statements were taken from the children’s parents and multiple red marks, bruises and scratches were located on the children a number of parents provided pictures of the injuries found on their children. The victim’s families received specialist support from officers.

After these enquiries had taken place, Lecka was arrested at her home on 5 July on suspicion of child cruelty offences. During interview, she answered no comment to all questions and refused to acknowledge her actions when shown the CCTV footage. She was released on bail whilst officers within the Child Abuse Investigation Team continued enquiries.

Detective Sergeant Geoff Boye of Met Police’s Public Protection Command said:

“As our officers continued to review over 300 hours of CCTV, it became clear that Lecka’s offending was prolific. Footage showed Lecka carrying out multiple assaults on the children in her care which included repeatedly pinching and grabbing children, dropping babies into their cots and on one occasion, she delivered several kicks to a young boy to the face and stepped on his shoulder.

“She was further arrested and charged on 25 July 2024 with 12 counts of child cruelty, 12 counts of actual bodily harm and one count of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent.”

Following an initial appearance in court, this indictment was amended to 24 counts of child cruelty against 24 separate children.

Lecka was convicted on Monday, 16 June of 21 counts of child cruelty. The jury found her not guilty on three counts. She will appear at Kingston Crown Court on Friday, 26 September for sentencing.

Source: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) published on this website Monday 16 May 2025 by Jill Powell

Seven men have been convicted for their role in the systematic abuse of vulnerable children in Rochdale.  

The Crown Prosecution Service prosecuted Mohammed Zahid, 64, Mushtaq Ahmed, 66, Kasir Bashir, 50, Roheez Khan, 39, Mohammed Shahzad, 43, Nisar Hussain, 41, and  Naheem Akram, 48, following an investigation by Greater Manchester Police.  

They were found guilty following a trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court of sexually abusing two girls in Rochdale between 2001 and 2006.  

The abuse started when each of the girls were aged just 13. Both were from vulnerable backgrounds and were known to social services. One victim was living in the care system during the offending period. They were groomed with gifts and money and often plied with alcohol or drugs before being attacked.

After reviewing the evidence presented by the prosecution – including victims’ video-recorded interviews, corroborating details like vehicle identifications, employment records, and links between the defendants – the jury found the defendants guilty.  

Liz Fell, Specialist Prosecutor for the CPS’ Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit, said: 

“These men targeted children, preyed upon their vulnerabilities and groomed them for their own sexual gratification. The treatment of the victims at the hands of these predators was nothing short of appalling. They were vulnerable children cruelly passed around for sex; abused, degraded and then discarded.  

“I want to pay tribute to the victims in this case for their courage in coming forward and giving evidence against these seven defendants. I hope they can find some comfort in knowing that it is because of their bravery and fortitude that we have been able to bring these offenders to justice.  

“This case has been incredibly complex and challenging, but thanks to the close collaboration with Greater Manchester Police, we were able to build a compelling case to present to the court. The jury saw through the defendants and delivered the justice these victims deserve.  These convictions send a very clear message that the CPS, working alongside law enforcement colleagues, will relentlessly pursue justice for victims and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, whenever that abuse took place.” 

The two girls were abused by the defendants: with Ahmed and Bashir, abusing one victim, and Khan, Shahzad, Hussain, and Akram abusing the other. Zahid abused both girls.  

Both victims, who were not known to each other, worked informally at a stall Zahid ran in Rochdale Market. He was also known to them as ‘Boss’ and ‘Bossman’.  

Zahid gave the girls jobs, gifts and money, before he began sexually abusing them and bringing them to addresses where they were plied with alcohol and expected to have unprotected sex with other men, including Ahmed, Bashir, and Khan.  

Shahzad was a taxi driver who met one of the victims when she was 13. Shahzad befriended her, texting her often and giving her lifts. After about a month, he started to regularly pick her up in his taxi and ply her with alcohol, before raping her.  

She was driven to remote locations and passed around amongst taxi drivers who knew Shahzad, including Akram, and Hussain, who sexually abused and raped her.  

To deal with the most complex and challenging child sexual abuse cases like this, the CPS has established a dedicated national Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit where Specialist Prosecutors use their expertise and experience to build strong cases and increase the number of successful prosecutions. 

Steph Parker, Assistant Chief Constable for Greater Manchester Police, said: 

“The survivors in this case are two women who were horrendously abused by this group of men. This unthinkable abuse was compounded by failings from authorities who let them down when they needed protecting the most. They were vulnerable children who experienced the worst trauma possible, and this will remain a matter of profound regret.

“I commend the faith the victims have shown in the GMP of today to support this long and complex investigation. We have excellent officers and staff who represent our determination to protect survivors and pursue offenders, through traditional detective work and our modern victim-centred approach. This is painstaking work that is bringing child abusers to justice.

“I know that our past failings have meant there are people who doubt the police’s commitment today to putting grooming gangs behind bars where they belong. Let me be clear: time is no barrier to justice, and we are actively working with dozens of survivors on numerous investigations to ensure no offender gets away with this. When you are ready, we will listen.

“Our dedicated Child Sexual Exploitation Major Investigations Team has almost 100 investigators working every day to listen to victims and to bring cases to court. Every town, city, and borough in GM has a dedicated multi-agency safeguarding team that shares information and investigates all reports to protect children from harm. We’re lightyears ahead of where we were, and we are totally focussed on listening to survivors and continuing to further improve on our best practices which are now well-embedded.”

Source: Home Office published on this website Tuesday 17 May 2025 by Jill Powell

Mr Speaker, with your permission, I will update the House on the audit the government commissioned from Baroness Casey on child sexual exploitation and grooming gangs, and on the action we are taking to tackle this vile crime – to put perpetrators behind bars, and to provide the innocent victims of those crimes with support and justice.

The House will be aware that on Friday, 7 men were found guilty of the most horrendous crimes in Rochdale between 2000 and 2006.

They were convicted of treating teenage girls as sex slaves – repeatedly raping them in filthy flats, alleyways and warehouses. The perpetrators included taxi drivers and market traders of Pakistani heritage, and it has taken 20 years to bring them to justice.

I want to pay tribute to the incredible bravery of the women who told their stories and have fought for justice through all those years. They should never have been let down for so long.

The sexual exploitation of children by grooming gangs is one of the most horrific crimes.

Children as young as 10 plied with drugs and alcohol, brutally raped by gangs of men and disgracefully let down again and again by the authorities who were meant to protect them and keep them safe.

These despicable crimes have caused the most unimaginable harm to victims and survivors throughout their lives and are a stain on our society.

Five months ago, I told the House our most important task was to stop perpetrators and put them behind bars.

I can report that that work is accelerating.

Arrests and investigations are increasing.

After I asked police forces in January to identify cases involving grooming and child sexual exploitation allegations that had been closed with no further action, more than 800 cases have now been identified for formal review.

And I expect that figure to rise above 1,000 in the coming weeks.

Let me be clear. Perpetrators of these vile crimes should be off our streets, behind bars and paying the price for what they have done.

Further rapid action is also under way to finally implement recommendations of past inquiries and reviews – including the 7-year Independent Inquiry into Child Abuse – recommendations which for too long have sat on the shelf.

So in the Crime and Policing Bill, we are introducing:

The long overdue mandatory reporting duty which I called for more than 10 years ago.

As well as aggravated offences for grooming offenders so their sentences match the severity of their crimes.

And earlier this year, I also commissioned Baroness Louise Casey to undertake a rapid national audit of the nature, scale and characteristics of gang-based exploitation.

I specifically asked her to look at the issue of ethnicity, and the cultural and social drivers for this type of offending – analysis that had never previously been done despite years of concerns being raised.

And I asked her to advise us on what further reviews, investigations and actions would be needed to address the current and historical failures that she found.

I told Parliament in January that I expected Baroness Casey to deliver the same kind of impactful and no-holds-barred report that she produced on Rotherham in 2015 so we never shy away from the reality of these terrible crimes.  

And I am very grateful to Louise and her team that they have done exactly that, with a hugely wide-ranging assessment conducted in just 4 months.

The findings of her audit are damning.

At its heart she identifies a deep-rooted failure to treat children as children. A continued failure to protect children and teenage girls from rape, from exploitation, and serious violence. And from the scars that last a lifetime.

She finds too much fragmentation in the authorities’ response, too little sharing of information, too much reliance on flawed data, too much denial, too little justice, too many criminals getting off, too many victims being let down.

To read more of this statement

To read the report

Source: The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) published on this website Friday 13 June 2025

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) is warning the public about a disturbing scam where criminals exploit the grief of bereaved families by impersonating them online and charging mourners to attend funerals that should be free.

Fraudsters are scanning publicly available funeral notices and creating fake Facebook profiles posing as family members or friends of the deceased. They then contact mourners with bogus links to funeral livestreams – demanding payment – or set up fake donation pages. These scams are not only deceitful but dangerous, with victims often handing over personal information or falling prey to push payment fraud (APP fraud) afterwards.

Online funerals became common during the COVID-19 pandemic and remain popular today as they allow friends and relatives who can’t attend in person to pay their respects. This ongoing practice has become a new target for online scammers.

Katherine Hart, CTSI Lead Officer for Doorstep Crime, said:

“This is a truly despicable scam – targeting people during one of the most emotionally difficult moments of their lives. It’s hard to imagine a more callous form of fraud. What’s particularly upsetting is that victims often feel they can’t report what’s happened for fear of adding further stress to grieving families. That silence is exactly what these criminals are counting on. We need people to stay vigilant, share warnings, and report anything suspicious. No one should feel ashamed for being taken in by such a ruthless trick.”

CTSI’s advice to the public is clear:

• ⁠⁠You should never be charged to attend a funeral, whether in person or via livestream.
• ⁠⁠Only donate through official, verified sources – check with the named funeral director or celebrant if unsure.
• ⁠⁠Never share personal or banking information in response to unsolicited messages.
• ⁠⁠Be cautious of friend requests or messages from unfamiliar profiles, even if they appear to be mutual friends.
• ⁠⁠If you’ve shared bank details, contact your bank immediately.

John Herriman, Chief Executive of CTSI, added:

“Scammers are always looking for new ways to manipulate and exploit people, and this is a particularly cruel example. Trading Standards teams across the UK are working tirelessly to raise awareness and protect local communities, but we also need the public’s help to speak out, report concerns and protect others from becoming a victim.”

If you or someone you know has been affected, please contact one of the following:

England & Wales: Action Fraud – www.actionfraud.police.uk

Scotland: Advice Direct Scotland – 0808 164 6000

Northern Ireland: Consumerline – 0300 123 6262

Consumer advice: Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline – 0808 223 1133