Ten charged in Coventry over teen sex abuse

At least four of the defendants are members of the same family

Ten men have been charged over allegations that they ran a sexual abuse gang in Coventry, police have said. Their five alleged teenage victims have been placed under police protection.

The men, at least four of whom are members of the same family, have been accused of a range of offences; including sex trafficking, rape and sexual assault against five girls aged between 16 and 18 years at the time. The offences allegedly took place between May and September last year.

West Midlands Police said that brothers Gulfraz Banaris, 20, and Ifaraz Banaris, 25, as well as Izthkhab Banaris, 24, were charged with conspiracy to traffic girls across Coventry for sexual exploitation. Gulfraz and Izthkhab are also both accused of a rape.

Police added that all three of the men appeared before Coventry magistrates yesterday and were held pending an appearance at Coventry Crown Court in November.

A second set of brothers Isa, 21, and Ismail Iqbal, 20, - who are also cousins of the Banaris brothers – also face trafficking charges and will remain behind bars until reappearing in court in November.

A police statement added that Ricardo Hinkson, 23, was remanded in custody and was due to appear in court this morning having been charged with conspiracy to traffic the girls. Amir Mahmood, 27, who is a sign writer, and milkman Tasveer Hussain, 30, are also due to appear at Coventry Magistrates Court, charged with the same offence.

And mechanic Saleem Hussain, 30, and Khezer Hussain, 25, face accusations of sexual assault and rape, respectively, and will appear before magistrates today, officers said.

Coventry PPU Chief Inspector Sue Holder, said: “Protecting young people from harm is a priority for West Midlands Police and the force takes reports of sexual and physical abuse extremely seriously. Anyone convicted of sexual exploitation, in whatever form, can expect to be dealt with severely by the courts.”

The accusations come as another group of men await trial over allegations that they were involved in running a child sexual exploitation ring in Oxford.