Nazir Ahmed: Former Labour peer accused of trying to rape young girl in 1970s

Lord denies denies two counts of attempting to rape a girl under 16, indecent assault of a boy under 11 and buggery of a boy under 11

Tom Batchelor
Thursday 18 November 2021 20:26 GMT
<p>Nazir Ahmed, who was previously Lord Ahmed of Rotherham </p>

Nazir Ahmed, who was previously Lord Ahmed of Rotherham

A former peer tried to rape a young girl when he was a teenager in the 1970s, a jury has been told.

Nazir Ahmed, formerly Lord Ahmed of Rotherham until he resigned last year, is standing trial at Sheffield Crown Court accused of sexual offences against a boy and a girl.

The female accuser alleges that Mr Ahmed attempted to rape her more than 40 years ago, when the defendant was about 16 or 17-years-old but she was much younger.

The jury heard that the 64-year-old former politician is also accused of a serious sexual assault against a boy who was under 11, which was also said to have taken place in the 1970s, and an indecent assault of the same youngster.

Mr Ahmed, who was both a Labour and non-affiliated peer throughout his 22-year parliamentary career, was charged along with his two older brothers - Mohammed Farouq, 71, and Mohammed Tariq, 65.

Mr Farouq and Mr Tariq face charges of indecent assault in relation to the same boy that Mr Ahmed is alleged to have abused.

However both of these men were deemed unfit to stand trial.

Mr Ahmed denies buggery of a boy under 11, two counts of attempted rape of a girl under 16 and the indecent assault of a boy under 11.

Opening the prosecution case, Mr Little told the court: “This is about repeated sexual abuse that took place in Rotherham over a number of years.”

He said: “Those involved kept it buried away for many years. It is no longer buried away and no longer kept quiet as they have complained.

“This was not a single incident. It was not isolated and it was not innocent sexual experimentation by children. It was abuse, repeated abuse, plain and simple.“

The prosecutor said the woman complainant ”had the courage to go to the police to make a complaint against a standing member of the House of Lords“.

Mr Little said Mr Ahmed told police it seemed there was ”an agenda behind the complaints“ and he was concerned that if he responded to the allegations this would be ”manipulated“.

During the trial, the jury was played a recording of a telephone call between the two complainants, made by the woman after she went to the police in 2016.

In the recording, the woman says to the man: ”What they did to you was utterly wrong and it's time now to seek justice for the little boy who could not protect himself.

“The police will look after you. They will believe you. They will take your allegations seriously. They are on your side. You are a victim.”

The man then tells the woman: “I don't want the bastard to get away with it.”

Mr Ahmed, from Rotherham, sat in the dock with a security guard wearing a dark suit.

The trial continues.

Additional reporting by PA

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