Rotherham abuse inquiry: Victims and survivors ‘let down’ as no police sacked

An eight-year investigation into multiple police failings during the Rotherham sex grooming scandal was condemned as a disgrace after its final report revealed that no officers have been dismissed.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) launched the inquiry in 2014 after it was revealed that at least 1,400 girls in the south Yorkshire town were abused between 1997 and 2013.

Organised groups of men, mostly of Pakistani origin, were responsible for targeting, trafficking and raping children as young as 11. Failings by South Yorkshire police and the local authority allowed gangs to act with virtual impunity.

The IOPC’s resulting Operation Linden investigation examined 265 allegations against 47 police officers by 51 complainants, most of them abuse survivors. It upheld 43 of the complaints and ruled that 14 officers “had a case to answer” for misconduct or gross misconduct.

One unnamed officer was said to have told the mother of an exploited child that it was a “fashion accessory” for Rotherham girls to have an “older Asian boyfriend” and that she would “grow out of it”.
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