Greater Manchester Police have announced the arrest of 21 men aged 18 to 58 as part of an ongoing investigation into child sexual exploitation (CSE).
Officers from the police force’s Bolton division arrested five men in Bolton, Bury, and Chorley on suspicion of engaging in sexual activity with a female child on October 15th.
This follows the arrest of eight men “on suspicion of offences ranging from rape of a female child and engaging in sexual activity with a female child” on October 6th, according to an official Greater Manchester Police statement, with another eight men having been arrested prior to that as part of an investigation first launched in 2018.
The arrested men have all been released on bail, with some conditions, as the investigation continues, while their 11 alleged victims are “continuing to be supported by GMP and partner agencies”.
“The action we have taken in the last few weeks has been a significant step in our operation into child sexual exploitation in Bolton and I can assure the public that our work does not stop until we bring each one of those responsible to justice,” commented Detective Inspector Dave Sinclair, of the Bolton Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Greater Manchester Police.
“This investigation is very much ongoing but anyone with any information or concerns can contact police knowing that all information will be treated with the strictest confidence,” he added, urging anyone who might have more information to contact the police force on 0161 856 4198 quoting Operation Pavarotti.
People may also contact the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111 to pass on information anonymously.
The arrests come as the Independent Inquiry Into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) in Britain has been accused of orchestrating a “cover-up” by some of the people who helped to expose the grooming gangs operating throughout the country in the first place, allegedly overlooking victims, whistleblowers, and abuse hotspots such as Rochdale and Rotherham and instead focusing on the testimony of many of the establishment institutions which failed victims previously.
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