Jurors hear ‘secret recording’ of suspected rapist targeting alleged victim

The 31-year-old told Sheffield Crown Court that Mohammed Imran Akhtar (37), of Godstone Road, Rotherham, quizzed her outside her home in 2015 about her children, social services and what she had told child sex abuse whistleblower Jayne Senior.

Giving evidence, the woman said she had secretly recorded part of their conservation while they were outside her house. The audio recording of the conversation was played to the jury on Thursday (13).

Akhtar and his seven co-defendants are accused of a total of 28 child sexual exploitation offences against five girls. The men deny all the offences.

The woman was allegedly raped and indecently assaulted by Akhtar between 2001 and 2003 — when she was aged between 14 and 16 and he was aged between 19 and 21.

Akhtar — who the prosecution say was known as Imran — is also charged with forcing her to have sex with another.

Giving evidence, the woman said: “He (Akhtar) started talking about my kids and which school they go to.

“From there, he started asking me who was under social services at the time.

“He started asking me about Jayne Senior and started asking me about the police.”

She said Akhtar had asked her whether he had forced her to have sex and, at the time, she had said "No". 

The woman said she had answered "No" because she was “scared”.

“I agreed because he was at my house and my kids were there,” she said.

Under cross-examination from Akhtar’s defense counsel, Mr Nawaz Hussain, the woman said Akhtar had looked “scared” and “nervous” while he was following her home.

The woman denied suggestions by Mr Hussain that, during the conversation, Akhtar had apologised for having a relationship with her outside of his marriage and had asked for forgiveness.

When asked whether her sex with Akhtar was consensual, she said: “Most of the time I did not consent.”

Mr Hussain said: “Are you sure Imran asked you to have sex with other people?”

She replied: “Yes”.

Asked whether she was sure she telling the truth about what Akhtar did, she said: “Yes.”

The woman said she had recently tracked down a Facebook account for a Nabeel Akhtar, who she believed was Nabeel Kurshid (34), of Weetwood Road, Rotherham, who is accused of raping and indecently assaulting her between 2001 and 2003 when he was aged between 17 and 19.

Asked by Kurshid’s defense counsel, Ms Julia Smart, if she had “made a mistake” in identifying him, she said: “No”.

The trial continues.