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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...shire-43385049
Telford grooming 'tip of the iceberg', says solicitor
A lawyer who led prosecutions against a child sex abuse ring in Telford has said those cases were the "tip of the iceberg".
Former chief prosecutor Nazir Afzal, who also oversaw similar high-profile cases in Rochdale, said he knew "more would come out".
Speaking amid calls for a new inquiry, he said there were probably thousands of street grooming victims in the UK.
West Mercia Police said it took all allegations "extremely seriously".
A Sunday Mirror investigation said the scale of sexual exploitation in Telford made it the UK's "worst-ever child grooming scandal".
The paper claimed abuse in the town has been widespread since 1980, when it began with "groups of mainly Asian men" targeting vulnerable white teenagers.
Mr Afzal led several prosecutions concerning offences in Telford, including one against two brothers convicted of trafficking girls for sex.
Speaking on the Victoria Derbyshire programme, he said: "I prosecuted, when I led nationally, the Telford original issue, I knew then that this was a bigger issue not just in Telford but everywhere."
He appeared alongside "Holly" - who spoke out anonymously about her abuse at the hand of gangs in the town.
"Now, seven or eight years later, I see stories like Holly's where she is not being listened to, she's not being believed, her abusers have acted with impunity because they think the authorities are not going to do anything about it.
"She is one of probably one of thousands of young girls and young boys who are being abused in street grooming up and down the country."
Ansar Ali, a spokesman for Together Against Grooming, also appeared on the programme and was asked why Asian gangs are often blamed for child sexual exploitation.
"These gangs that operate are not what you call your classic, typical paedophile, that's not their motivation," he said.
"Yes they are sexual predators but it is more that they use these girls as a sexual commodity and it is about making money off them.
"That is their main driver.
"I don't think there is a link to their heritage because most people from their background don't commit these sort of acts.
"The vast majority of people find their actions reprehensible, including the communities from which they originate."
Telford MP Lucy Allan has asked for an urgent question in Parliament about the situation and called for an urgent inquiry.
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