Girl (13) “goaded” into performing sex act on 27-year-old man, court told

A MAN has gone on trial accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl 14 years ago.

Arshid Hussain (42) denies forcing the girl to give him oral sex in his car in Rotherham town centre between January and April 2003 when he was 27.

Hussain was not at the opening of the trial this morning (Tuesday) at Sheffield Crown Court.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Judge Sarah Wright told the jury Hussain was not present for “health reasons” and she had “allowed him to be absent”.

Mr Peter Hampton, prosecuting, said Hussain and his brother Basharat had been introduced to the girl in 2003 by their then 17-year-old brother, Sageer Hussain.

Mr Hampton said: “Following a trial in 2016 in this building, Sageer Hussain, Basharat Hussain and a cousin of the Hussains, Asif Ali, were all convicted along with five other men of a litany of sexual offences relating to the sexual exploitation of the same girl.

“The fact that these men were convicted does not help you with your decision-making in relation to the guilt or otherwise of this defendant - that is a matter for you to decide from the evidence you hear from the girl and other witnesses in the case.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The girl knew Hussain as “Ash” and Basharat as “Bash”, said Mr Hampton. 

“Ash and Bash would constantly come into town and they would want oral sex from her,” he said.

“Bash would drive a blue Subaru and Ash would drive a red Subaru.

“Ash and Bash would get out of their cars when they attended town, parking near the Boots store.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“They would talk to Sageer and then ask the girl to get in the car and give them oral sex.

“Ash, Bash and a fourth brother Bono ruled Sageer - he seemed to be scared of them.”

The girl was “goaded” into performing oral sex on Bash and Ash, he said, and the defendant had not been “forceful with her”.

The alleged victim first told police about her abuse at the hands of Sageer Hussain in 2003, but withdrew her complaint after her family was threatened.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They ended up fleeing the country and moving abroad for around a year.

In 2013, when she was 27, she made further disclosures to police about the abuse and named more men, including Arshid Hussain.

Mr Hampton said when the girl attended an identification parade in June 2015 she had identified Basharat (41) and Arshid Hussain as the men who had sexually assaulted her, but confused the two men’s names.

Mr Hampton said she had “identified both brother separately regardless of that discrepancy” and had identified cars both brothers had access to.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Arshid Hussain has not been interviewed by police about the alleged sexual assault because doctors concluded he was not well enough to be interviewed, added the prosecutor.

The trial, which is due to last around a week, continues. 

Related topics: