Rotherham men deny historic child sex offences

Three men have pleaded not guilty to 15 offences of indecent assault alleged to have been carried out against a child in Rotherham in the 1990s.

Riaz Makhmood, 38, 37-year-old Sajid Ali, aged 37 and Zaheer Iqbal, 39, all from the Masbrough area of Rotherham denied the charges during a hearing at Sheffield Crown Court on Monday.

They were charged with a total of 15 offences of indecent assault against a child aged under 14 between June 1994 and June 1995 in Rotherham, following an independent investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Riaz Makhmood faces three charges of indecent assault; Sajid Ali faces seven charges of indecent assault and Zaheer Iqbal faces five charges of indecent assault.

The men are due to stand trial for the offences at Sheffield Crown Court on November 9 this year.

These are the first individuals to be charged with offences by operation Stovewood, the independent NCA investigation into non-familial child sexual exploitation and abuse in Rotherham.

To date, a total of 15 men have now been arrested, interviewed and bailed pending further enquiries for CSEA related offences.

The investigation has identified 46 suspects to date and has begun the process of engaging with 157 victims and survivors.

The investigation is on-going.