Three brothers have been found guilty of child sex offences in Barrow and Leeds.
Shaha Amran Miah, 48, Shaha Alman Miah, 47, and Shaha Joman Miah, 38, were convicted of child sex offences that happened between 1996 and 2010.
Amran Miah sexually abused three children and faced 16 sexual offences, two charges of intimidation and one of kidnap.
Joman Miah sexually abused three children and faced 40 offences.
The girls abused by Amran Miah and Joman Miah were as young as six or seven when the abuse began, and it lasted several years.
The middle brother, Alman Miah, faced three sexual offence charges against one girl.
Joman Miah started a relationship with a 14-year-old, knowing she was under 16. He groomed her by giving her gifts, alcohol and cigarettes.
Around the same time, Alman Miah started a relationship with a 15-year-old girl. During their relationship, the girl was raped by his brother, Amran Miah.
In late 2009, the 15-year-old victim was threatened by Amran Miah after speaking to the police.
She was grabbed off the street by her hair and shoved in the back of a car by a man.
Amran Miah was in the passenger seat. The man who grabbed her asked her what she had said to the police and told her “she would be dead” if she had told them anything.
Amran Miah told her she did not know what he was capable of and that he would do anything to protect his family.
He also made threats to a woman who was due to be interviewed by the police in 2010 in relation to the brothers. Due to the threats, that interview never took place.
All three men pleaded not guilty to the charges they faced but were convicted yesterday following a trial at Preston Crown Court.
They will be sentenced on February 21.
Derek Artis, district Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West’s rape and serious sexual offence unit, said: “Shaha Amran Miah, Shaha Alman Miah and Shaha Joman Miah groomed and exploited the girls in this case with no concern for them or the impact that such dreadful abuse from a young age would have on their lives.
“The CPS worked with Cumbria police to build a strong case to put before the jury, including eye-witness testimony and extensive phone evidence. The strength of the evidence was such that the jury found the men guilty.
“I would like to commend the women who have come forward and supported a prosecution in this case.
“I hope they can now begin to move forward knowing the men who abused and exploited them will face justice.”
