Seven men, including Iranian and Syrian national boat migrants, appeared before the Bristol Magistrates Court on Wednesday, facing over 40 drug and sex offences in a grooming gang investigation into the abuse of at least 11 teenage victims in the English city.
Avon and Somerset Police said that the alleged offences, which include rape, sexual exploitation, and plying minors with hard drugs, are believed to have occurred in Bristol between 2022 and 2025. It followed an investigation sparked in November 2023 over concerns that a teenage girl was being sexually exploited.
In total, the police have identified 11 potential victims, all aged in the mid to late teens when the alleged offences took place.
The first alleged offender was identified as a Syrian national and self-identified “Arab”, Mohamed Arafe, 19. He was charged with sexual assault, inciting the sexual exploitation of a child, supplying cocaine and ecstasy, and five counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child. The Times reports Arafe arrived in the UK as a refugee in 2019 as part of the Syrian resettlement scheme.
Iranian national, Sina Omari, 20, who also identified as being Arab, was charged with two counts of rape, two counts of making an indecent photograph of a child, supplying cocaine and ecstasy, and four counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child. Omari is a small boat migrant and entered the United Kingdom over the English Channel by smuggler in 2022.
Another Arab-identifying Syrian national, Wadie Sharaf, 21, was charged with rape, attempted rape, sexual activity with a child, and three counts of sexual assault. He entered the UK by the same smuggler boat means as Omari, in 2021 and was given asylum seeker status by the UK government.
An Iraqi national, who describes himself as “mixed white and Asian”, Sardam Ahmed, 19, was charged with four counts of rape, distributing an indecent photograph of a child, supplying cocaine and ecstasy, and arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child.
Egyptian national Ihab Al-Eisawi, 26, who identified as “Any other Asian background,” was charged with two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
Two British passport holders were also charged in the alleged grooming gang case, including Hussain Bashar, 19, who was only identified as “Any other” ethnicity, and was charged with one count of rape. Arab-identifying British national Mohammed Kurdi, 21, was charged with two counts of rape, two counts of arranging or facilitating the sexual exploitation of a child, and supplying ecstasy and cannabis.
The senior investigating officer in the case, Detective Chief Inspector Tom Herbert, said: “This remains a complex and sensitive investigation which has the protection of young girls from exploitation and the disruption of offending at its very heart.
“Working with our partners, we’ve ensured the most appropriate safeguarding measures and support has been made available to each victim to protect them from harm.
“Officers have been working around the clock to identify potential offences and we’ve worked extremely closely with the CPS to reach this highly significant stage.”
Bristol Superintendent Deepak Kenth said that in light of the case, the police will be carrying out “reassurance patrols in the city and urge anyone with worries or concerns to speak to one of our officers.”
“We know this update will be a huge shock to our communities and I want to reassure everyone that we’ll continue to work tirelessly to protect children from abuse and exploitation,” he said.
“Working with our partner agencies, we’ve held events in Bristol city centre and continue to work with hotels, taxi drivers, and other businesses, to raise awareness about the signs of exploitation and the need to report any concerns or issues to the police.”
James Bolton-Smith, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor and lead of the Crown Prosecution Service’s Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit, stressed that the “proceedings against the suspects are active and they have a right to a fair trial.”
“It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in anyway prejudice these proceedings.”