A disgraced former peer of the realm, Lord Nazir Ahmed, has been sentenced to over five years in prison for historic sexual offences committed against two children in Rotherham during the early 1970s. The 64-year-old, who retains the title Lord Ahmed of Rotherham despite resigning from the House of Lords, was found guilty in January at Sheffield Crown Court of two counts of attempted rape and one count of buggery. These crimes occurred when Ahmed was approximately 16 or 17 years old.
The offences came to light decades later following complaints made to the police in 2016. A female victim recounted to the jury how Ahmed attempted to rape her when she was much younger than him, describing the incident as a profound trauma that left her with overwhelming shame throughout her childhood and early adult years. In her victim personal statement read in court, she stated: "An overwhelming feeling of shame remained with me throughout my childhood and early adult years. It was a burden I was made to carry, and it silenced me for many years. It is now time for me to pass that burden to him – the paedophile who I know feels no personal shame." She further noted that Ahmed had now been publicly shamed for his actions.
Ahmed was also convicted of a serious sexual assault, specifically buggery, against a boy under the age of 11 during the same period. The male complainant, in his victim personal statement, detailed the lasting impact of the abuse, saying: "Being sexually abused by [the three men] has affected me on a daily basis and left me unable to show affection to my own children. I buried the abuse and carried it with me on my own for years and years. I feel shame because of what these men did to me. This is not about revenge, this is about justice." During the trial, the jury heard a recording of a telephone call between the two complainants, prompted by the man's email to the woman stating: "I have evidence against that paedophile." The prosecution, led by Tom Little QC, presented this evidence to corroborate the victims' accounts.
On Friday, Mr Justice Lavender sentenced Ahmed to five years and six months' imprisonment, comprising three and a half years for the buggery offence and two concurrent years for each attempted rape. The judge emphasised the profound and lifelong effects of Ahmed's actions, stating: "Your actions have had profound and lifelong effects on the girl and the boy, who have lived with what you did to them for between 46 and 53 years. Their statements express more eloquently than I ever could how your actions have affected their lives in so many different and damaging ways." The sentence was determined in line with legal guidelines applicable to offences committed at the time, reflecting the historical context of the crimes.
In mitigation, Imran Khan QC argued that Ahmed had devoted his life to public service and that his fall from grace had occurred in the full glare of publicity, including calls for him to be stripped of his title. He noted: "That very good reputation he had has gone." The case was adjourned for six weeks to assess whether Ahmed could cover prosecution costs. Notably, Ahmed had previously resigned from the House of Lords in November 2020 following a conduct committee report that found he had sexually assaulted a vulnerable woman seeking his help, making him the first peer recommended for expulsion.
The article, reported by the PA News Agency and published in the Darlington and Stockton Times, highlights the severity of the offences and the courage of the victims in coming forward after decades. Ahmed's two older brothers, Mohammed Farouq and Mohammed Tariq, faced related charges but were deemed unfit to stand trial and received absolute discharges.