TL;DR
- Seven men have been charged with over 40 offences involving 11 teenagers, stemming from an investigation into child sexual exploitation in Bristol that began in late 2023.
- The charged individuals, aged 19 to 26, face multiple serious allegations, including rape, sexual assault, and drug-related offences, with all five named suspects from Bristol.
- Police are providing safeguarding measures to victims and continue to engage with local businesses to raise awareness about identifying and reporting exploitation.
Seven men charged after investigation into child sexual exploitation in Bristol | UK News
Seven men have been charged with more than 40 offences against 11 teenagers after an investigation into child sexual exploitation in Bristol.
The alleged offences took place between 2022 and 2025 when the victims were in their mid to late teens.
Police said an investigation into claims of group-based sexual abuse in the city began in late 2023.
The men were arrested in April 2024 and bailed, but were detained again yesterday and are due to appear at Bristol Magistrates’ Court this morning.
The seven charged are:
Mohamed Arafe, 19, (Syrian): Six child sexual exploitation charges and one count of sexual assault. He also faces two counts over the supply of cocaine and ecstasy.
Sina Omari, 20, (Iranian): Two counts of rape; five child sexual exploitation charges; two counts of making an indecent photo of a child; two counts over the supply of cocaine and ecstasy.
Wadie Sharaf, 21, (Syrian): One count of rape; one count of attempted rape; three counts of sexual assault; one count of sexual activity with a child.
Hussain Bashar, 19, (British): One count of rape.
Mohammed Kurdi, 21 (British): Two counts of rape; two child sexual exploitation charges; two counts over the supply of ecstasy and cannabis.
Unnamed 19-year-old man: Four counts of rape; one child sexual exploitation charge; one count of distributing an indecent photo of a child, two counts over the supply of cocaine and ecstasy.
Unnamed 26-year-old-man: Two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.
All the five men named by police are from Bristol.
Police are safe guarding the victims
Officers said safeguarding measures and support have been made available to the victims.
Superintendent Deepak Kenth said the case would be a “huge shock to our communities” but they were working “tirelessly” to stop child sexual exploitation in the city.
“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,” he said.
It comes as the national grooming gangs inquiry is still trying to find a chairperson acceptable to survivors.
The inquiry into the sexual exploitation of white girls by gangs of mainly south Asian men was announced in June following a government U-turn.