Man jailed for grooming 'vulnerable' teenage girl

A married man who groomed a "vulnerable" teenage girl for months before booking her into hotels for sex has been jailed for 11 years.

Shoaib Mohammed made contact with the girl on Snapchat when he knew she was 14, then after encouraging her to send sexualised images arranged for her to leave home in Leicester and meet him in Sheffield, where he took her to hotels for sex.

The 34-year-old, from Sheffield, had pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual activity with a child, one count of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity, and three counts of possessing indecent images of a child.

He was sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on Thursday.

The court heard Mohammed knew the victim's age when he began grooming her through electronic communication in 2021, and that he was significantly older than her at the time.

Judge Keith Raynor, sentencing, said the defendant "groomed her and manipulated her" over a period of months.

"The contact was to such a degree that the victim thought that [the defendant] and her were boyfriend and girlfriend," he said.

"You acted as her mentor and confidant, but you also wanted to drive a wedge between her and her friends."

The judge said the victim was "struggling emotionally" at the time and worried about impending GCSE mock exams, which Mohammed was "fully aware of" and exploited.

"At this stage you had one thing on your mind, and it was to abuse her sexually," he said.

Mohammed arranged for the girl to travel from her home in Leicester by train and meet him at Sheffield, after which he drove her to a quiet street in the Manchester area and had sex with her in a car.

They then went to a series of hotels in Sheffield over a number of days, where he repeatedly left her alone for hours while he carried on with his normal life.

In one case a receptionist challenged Mohammed as he tried to book into a room with the victim, which the judge said showed "a great professionalism and absolute sense of duty".

The victim's family reported the girl as missing, which the judge said "must have been one of the most terrible things for a parent to have to do".

Mohammed went into "a panic" when he learned police were searching for the girl, the court heard, and he drove her back to Sheffield railway station, after which she returned to Leicester and her family.

Mohammed was arrested by police soon afterwards, but the court heard he only pleaded guilty to the offences as a trial was set to begin earlier this year, with the case having been listed and relisted numerous times.

As well as a custodial sentence - of which he must serve at least two thirds - he will be on extended licence for three years, and will be subject to a sexual harm prevention order for 15 years.

In a victim impact statement she read out herself in court, the victim said she had been left fearing she was pregnant after the incidents, and now had problems trusting people and making new relationships.

She also said the long delay between the abuse taking place and the sentencing had had a significant impact, but added she was determined to speak out.

"It has been another period of my life spent carrying what happened to me while waiting for justice," she said.

"I'm here for the girls who are too afraid to speak. I'm here for the women who were never believed.

"I'm here for the children who were never given the chance to tell their story."

Her mother also addressed the court, saying hearing about the pain her daughter had suffered was "incredibly difficult" and adding the delayed proceedings have had "a massive impact" on everyone involved.

Judge Raynor said the victim's account was "one of the most impactful statements that I have ever heard in my judicial career" and praised her for speaking "eloquently about the fear she experienced as a 15-year-old".

After telling the court the backlog of cases in England and Wales was between 82,000 and 100,000 cases, he said the delays in this case reflect the "unfortunate state of the criminal justice system".

He also offered commendations to the Leicestershire Police officers leading the investigation for their work over the five years.

Following sentencing, Nicola Potts from the Crown Prosecution Service said Mohammed "preyed on a young victim while posing as a caring friend and romantic partner", with the defendant's actions delaying the arrival of justice for his victim.

"The evidence that this man groomed and abused the victim in this case was conclusive," she said.

"However, his continued denials have taken years of work to bring him to justice as we built a case that stopped his lies in their tracks."

Det Con Daljinder Gill, from Leicestershire Police, issued an appeal for "anyone else who may have experienced similar behaviour from Mohammed or who has concerns about contact they have had with him" to get in touch with officers.

"If anything about this case feels familiar to you, please come and speak to us," he said.

"You will be listened to, taken seriously and supported."

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