Grooming gang ringleader, Shabir Ahmed, appeal rejected

Shabir Ahmed

The ringleader of a gang of Asian men who groomed young white girls for sex appealed against his conviction.

Shabir Ahmed was found guilty of 30 child rape charges and jailed for 19 years in 2012.

Lawyers representing Ahmed argued that potential irregularities in the jury room meant the guilty verdicts were "arguably unsafe".

But three Appeal Court judges rejected the claim and upheld the convictions.

The court heard that, during his trial in 2012, a report emerged online suggesting that the jury had reached verdicts on seven of the defendants.

The information could only have come from inside the jury's deliberating room and was not the result of guess work, said Ahmed's appeal barrister, Simon Nichol.

He argued the fact the report appeared on a Facebook page linked to a right-wing group suggested "a bias from a juror or jurors".

"The bare facts are such that there is an obvious and real danger that someone in that jury room was communicating with someone outside the jury who had an interest in the verdict," he added.

But the claim was dismissed at the Court of Appeal by Sir Brian Leveson, who considered Ahmed's application with Mr Justice Keith and Mrs Justice Lang.

His failed appeal bid did not relate to other sex offences - for which he is serving a concurrent 22-year sentence.