Sir Mark Rowley previously said the force had ‘not seen’ a problem with child sexual exploitation gangs in London – today he said they are dealing with tens of cases that would be considered grooming gangs by the public
Met Police confirm tens of ‘grooming gang’ cases in London
The Met Police is dealing with tens of recent and non-recent grooming gang cases, City Hall has been told. Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley revealed the figure having previously told the London Assembly “I cannot guarantee there is something out there that we have not seen” when he was asked directly about child sexual exploitation gangs in the capital in February.
After a MyLondon/Express investigation that scrutinised official denials, this week Susan Hall AM repeatedly asked Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan to apologise to survivors after he was accused of dismissing her questions in January. The Mayor did not apologise, and failed to answer when asked if he knew about any grooming gangs when he was a Wandsworth MP between 2005 and 2016.
After Khan deflected a series of yes or no questions from Hall, the Commissioner read a prepared statement clarifying information that was first reported by MyLondon/Express in a letter sent to the Mayor last month. Days after our investigation, the force announced it would be reviewing 9,000 cases of group-based sexual abuse, including cases characterised as grooming gangs, going back to 2010.
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After reiterating these cases would also include other types of child sexual exploitation, Rowley went on to discuss how many cases the force has to deal with at the moment. Among thousands of sexual offences a month, the Commissioner said: “Our current caseload, includes tens of complex group-based cases closest to what the public may understand by the term grooming gangs.”
Rowley went on to say the ethnicity of victims and suspects reflects London’s diversity, adding: “In these cases, we do not see the typology reported elsewhere, where there have been cases of offending committed by groups of Pakistani men on white British children being the sole or majority case. It will be part of the picture, but it’s not dominating in the way that’s been reported elsewhere.”
The review is expected to last years and cost many millions of pounds, requiring funding from central government. Rowley also said there was a shortage of officers with the specific skills needed to tackle such sensitive cases. Responding to some of the commentary on the topic, Rowley added: “There’s too much easy reach to simplistic analysis that risks misleading the communities.”
‘We owe it to survivors to see justice delivered’
Prior to the broader reassessment announced last month, the Met had already re-examined 922 potential cases and in July submitted 197 to the National Crime Agency as part of the Home Office initiated Operation Beaconport. The Mayor’s office said he had no indication of any cases being reviewed in London as late as July 1, but he would not be drawn when Hall asked him directly about this.
On Thursday afternoon (November 14), the London Assembly called on the government to progress the national grooming gang inquiry as quickly as possible, and to provide the Met with the relevant resources to review the 9,000 cases.
Susan Hall AM, who proposed the motion, said: “We owe it to victims and survivors to see justice is delivered when tackling grooming gangs. The unacceptable delays to the national inquiry delay this justice every day, and I am pleased that the Assembly has supported my motion calling on the Mayor to act.
“We need to ensure that all authorities responsible – the Met, the Inquiry, MOPAC, and the GLA – have the resources and support that they need to investigate this heinous crime.”
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