Sex ring accused appear in court

Five people from Shropshire have appeared in court in connection with a child sex ring allegedly involving nine teenage girls.

The defendants are alleged to have been part of a gang which groomed girls aged between 13 and 15 for sex with other men.

Mohammed Sultan, 23, from Victoria Avenue, Wellington, Mohammed Yunis, 57, and Abdul Rouf, 33, both of Kingsland, Arleston, are all charged with conspiring with others to cause or incite a child to engage in sexual activity between January 1, 2008, and December 7, 2009, in Shrewsbury or elsewhere in the country.

Ahdel Ali, 20, of Regent Street, Wellington, Telford, and a male from Wellington, who cannot be named for legal reasons, are charged with trafficking persons within the UK for sexual exploitation, conspiring with a female of 13 years or older to engage in sexual activity, supplying a Class A drug and supplying a Class B drug.

All five appeared at Shrewsbury Crown Court today.

They spoke only to confirm their names.

They were all remanded in custody until a plea and case management hearing which was fixed for March 29, 2010.