Grooming gang survivor forced to wait almost two years for trial

A man was charged with two counts of rape of a female under 16 years old and one count of rape of a female over 18 years old in the summer of 2024.

But a trial has been listed for February 2026.

The man was charged following an investigation by the National Crime Agency’s Operation Stovewood team, who take responsibility for non-recent child sexual abuse allegations in Rotherham from 1997 to 2013.

Many Stovewood trials are still waiting to go through the courts, with some survivors waiting almost three decades for their cases to be heard.

The complainant told GB News that after waiting decades for an investigation to be launched, she was distressed that she now had such a lengthy wait for a trial.

“I’m devastated that I’ve got to wait another year for a trial. When I first heard that it was set for 2026 my mental health took a turn for the worse.

“Survivors are having to wait decades to get to court and get justice and it’s not fair, it’s not ok and it has to change.”

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Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick told this broadcaster that the delay was an “appalling ordeal” and urged the Government to close delays.

“Justice for the survivors of this appalling ordeal cannot come soon enough. It is completely unacceptable that victims are being made to endure yet more delays while there are an extra 3,000 court days the Labour Government could be using to expedite cases.”

A Ministry of Justice source hit back at Jenrick’s figures and said: “Even if the courts were sitting at maximum capacity, it would not be enough. The demand on courts inherited by the government is simply too high.”

The shadow minister continued: “If convictions are secured, whole life sentences must be handed down — and if they are foreign nationals they must be deported, no ifs or buts. They should never set foot on British soil again.”

Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe said: “Justice delayed is justice denied. The British establishment continues to fail thousands and thousands of young British girls - where is the urgency? The way in which this crisis has been ignored and suppressed is disgusting and shames our nation.

“We need deportations and prosecutions, on a vast scale. Anybody involved should either be behind bars in the UK, or sent back to where they came from if a foreign national.

“A total overhaul of how we approach these monsters is required. Swift justice is needed.”

This latest revelation comes amid concerns about court delays in England and Wales.

As of March 2024, there was a backlog of 10,141 sexual offence cases and 2,786 rape cases.

The backlog of sexual offence cases is a 196 per cent rise from 2019.

Lawrence Newport, director of the Crush Crime campaign, told GB News: “The backlog is a national disgrace. No victim should face years of delays. No rape trial should take up to 4 years. We should not accept courts shut across the country while the backlog grows by 500 cases a month.

“Government must act and end the backlog. Victims deserve better. The courts must open, cases must be heard. No excuses, no delays.”

News of this delayed trial comes amid a wider debate about the national grooming gangs scandal in Britain.

GB News exclusively revealed earlier this week that safeguarding minister Jess Phillips had denied a request from Oldham Council to launch a Government-led review into abuse gangs in the town.

This led to Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservatives, to call for a national inquiry into the scandal.

The controversy has been heightened by the involvement of Elon Musk, the owner of X, who has regularly taken to the platform to criticise the Labour Government over its handling of the scandal.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “The Government inherited a justice system in crisis, with a record and rising Crown Court caseload which delays and denies justice for far too many victims.

“Since July, we have put more funding into Crown Courts so they will have their highest capacity in almost a decade and doubled magistrates’ sentencing powers so Crown Courts can hear the most serious cases.

“We have also commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to recommend once-in-a-generation reform of our criminal courts, reporting in spring this year.”