Pakistani Gang Convicted for Multiple Rapes of Young Girls

BBC
January 17, 2014

Hassan Abdulla, 33, and three teenage boys were found guilty of a series of rapes and sexual assaults on girls in Peterborough
Zdeno Mirga, Hassan Abdulla and three teenage boys were found guilty of a series of rapes and sexual assaults on young girls in Peterborough.

Two men and three teenage boys have been found guilty of a series of rapes and sexual assaults on young girls.

Zdeno Mirga, 18, Hassan Abdulla, 33, and three boys were convicted at the Old Bailey. The Crown Prosecution Service said it was one of the “worst cases” of child sex abuse it had seen.

The group targeted five girls aged 13 and 14 in Peterborough. They are due to be sentenced on 20 February.

Mirga’s brother Dusan, 20, David Ziga, 19, and another teenager were cleared.

One of the group’s victims, referred to in court as Victim A, was a 13-year-old girl with a severe learning disability.

The gang congregated at a fried chicken takeaway in Peterborough and carried out their attacks at locations including a children’s playground, using what police described as “sophisticated” tactics to groom their victims.

After a trial lasting two-and-a-half months, the five were convicted of a total of 18 counts of rape, one of causing or inciting child prostitution, one of engaging in sexual activity with a child, three of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and three of sexual assault.

Mirga
Mirga, known as “Skinny” was the leader of the child-rape gang.

Judge John Bevan QC said: “Because some of the defendants do not speak good enough English, despite having lived here a long time, three interpreters have worked full time during this case, at a cost of over £30,000.”

He told the jury: “You have sat diligently and paid the closest of attention for weeks on end.

“It has been transparently obvious that you have been working very hard.”

He excused them from further jury service for the next 15 years.

Victim A described Zdeno Mirga, known as “Skinny”, as the gang’s boss, prosecutor Angela Rafferty said.

“He encouraged her, often very forcefully indeed, to give others… sex.

“He did this using the power he had over her at the time, or threatened her and sometimes he used violence against her.

“Skinny took her to parties where she was shared around sexually.”

The girl told police that Mirga “shared” her because he wanted money to buy cannabis and vodka, the court heard.

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