THE OXFORD PAPER Your guide for your
Thursday, March 29, 2018 No.85
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Weekly leisure guide for in & around Oxford
Out& About
New U’s boss excited by Trust fined £1m for death Honoured to meet the Page 16 challenge Page 2 future king Sport of Connor
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Ideas for a cracking Easter day out
Concocting a great show to produce George’ s Marvellous Medicine
Gang carried out ‘unimaginable level of abuse’ on teenage girls By George Welch A ‘DESPICABLE’ sex gang who subjected vulnerable young girls in Oxford to an ‘almost unimaginable level’ of abuse have been found guilty of multiple offences. The grooming ring of eight men was convicted of more than 20 offences, including rape and indecent assault, against six teenage girls between 1998 and 2005. The girls were aged between 13 and 17 at the time of the offences. The men worked together to groom some of the victims, befriending them and building trust, police said. Some of the girls were given lifts and taken to parties, as well as being given alcohol and drugs. Over time, the victims were subjected to a series of indecent assaults and rapes. The defendants were convicted at Oxford Crown Court on Friday after a five-month court case – Assad Hussain, 37, of Iffley Road, Oxford, guilty of five counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault, not guilty of one count of indecent assault; Kameer Iqbal, 39, of Dashwood Road, Oxford, guilty of three counts of rape; Khalid Hussain, 38, of Ashhurst Way, Oxford, guilty of rape and indecent assault, not guilty of one count of rape; Kamran Khan, 36, of Northfield Road, Bolton, guilty of indecent assault and false imprisonment, not guilty of rape; Moinul Islam, 41, of Wykeham Crescent, Oxford, guilty of rape,
two counts of indecent assault and supplying cannabis, not guilty of false imprisonment; Raheem Ahmed, 40, of Starwort Path, Oxford, guilty of two counts of indecent assault and false imprisonment, not guilty of rape; Alladitta Yousaf, 48, of Bodley Road, Oxford, guilty of indecent assault; Haji Khan, 38 of Willows, Oxford, guilty of one count of rape and one count of conspiracy to rape Two others who stood trial, Saboor Abdul, 37, of Oxford Road, Oxford and Cee Jay Jackson, 56, of Leon Close, Oxford, were acquitted of all charges. Child protection charity NSPCC praised the courage of the girls for giving evidence. A spokesperson said: “Thanks to the bravery of their victims who, despite the violence infl icted on them, showed tremendous courage to face their abusers in court and help convict them of their crimes.” Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Glover, of Thames Valley Police Major Crime Unit, said the convictions were only possible because of the “incredible bravery” of the gang’s victims. He said: “To have come through that trauma, and to have been able to help and support us throughout our investigation is a testament to the strength of their characters.” The jury returned verdicts on February 27, March 15, March 22 and March 23. The eight convicted will be sentenced at the same court in June.
Fitness fanatics put a new spin on time travel OXFORD fundraisers pumped up the volume on their boom box and dug out their sweatbands for an 80s themed spin-a-thon. The event took place at the Ferry Leisure Centre on Tuesday last week to raise funds for Sport Relief as the shell-suited exercisers stepped back in time. Campaigners for the charity
helped Oxford live up to its billing as a fit and healthy city. In 2016, Oxford was revealed as one of the fittest cities in the country with the highest number of people working out at least once a week. A number of other events took place at the north Oxford leisure centre during the packed week-
long fundraising campaign. Fitness fanatics took part in a 90 minute high-intensity circuit session and swimmers joined in a 1km swim challenge. Donations were made to the nationwide Sport Relief campaign to get more people active and fundraise for vulnerable adults in the UK.
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