The threat of depraved gangs grooming young girls is more dangerous today than decades ago when the predators roamed the streets hunting for vulnerable victims, one of the scandal’s most courageous survivors has insisted. But instead of the street level grooming if yesteryear the monsters’ operations have evolved, moving from street corners directly into the bedrooms of today’s children.
And rather than cigarettes and alcohol they are using online gaming credits to entice victims. "Girl One," a survivor of the notorious Oxford grooming gang scandal who endured three years of horrific sexual exploitation from the age of 12, issued a stark and terrifying warning to parents and authorities alike: the danger to girls today is worse than ever, supercharged by the digital age.
Grooming gang survivor: Predators enticing kids with 'game credits'
Speaking exclusively to the Express, the survivor highlighted how social media platforms like Snapchat and Instagram and online games such as Roadblocks have weaponised the grooming process, making children infinitely more accessible to organised predators than ever before.
“In my opinion, it's like giving paedophiles access to a sweet shop," she warned. “If somebody wants to find a vulnerable kid, they’re going to find them like that. They’re going to be able to groom them online and get hold of them much easier. They don't even need to be on the street anymore. They can sit at home and just swipe for vulnerable children. It makes me feel sick.”
Over two decades ago Girl One’s abuse began when she was approached outside school by an older “attractive” man offering cigarettes and a sympathetic ear. Today, she notes, the tactics have shifted, but the malicious intent remains identical.
She said: “Back in my day, they used to have to scour the streets. They’d give you a few cigarettes and a can of lager. Kids don't want that anymore. They want credit for games and things like that.
“But it’s still the same thing. And parents maybe don't necessarily realise that their children are accessing these platforms where adults are acting as their friend, looking to do them harm.”
While the Government continues to float the idea of banning social media for teenagers, Girl One believes such measures are fundamentally toothless without severe structural changes to the internet.
“How do you enforce it?” she asked. “Kids are much more technologically savvy than adults, and they'll find a way around it. In fact, these predatory people will give them the tools to get around it. Unless you're going to completely ban smartphones or mandate photo ID to join these platforms, there’s no point. It just becomes another weapon in the predator’s armoury."
Girl One’s claims are backed-up a warning a criminal lawyer who spent 20 years defending the paedophiles, who fears “every girl in Britain” is at risk of being groomed.
Marcus Johnstone specialises in sexual offence and exploitation cases and told the Express earlier this year how traditional model of grooming gangs - men targeting vulnerable girls in town centres - has become far more sinister because the next generation "learn and adapt" from previous offenders caught by the authorities.
And while old-style cases still exist, the lawyer also said most predatory behaviour had shifted online, meaning it is not just vulnerable girls in care who are at most risk but “any girl, from any background with a smartphone in her bedroom”.
Mr Johnstone said: “The internet has become the primary facilitator for modern grooming gangs.
“Predators are no longer limited by geography. They utilise encrypted apps and dark web forums to operate with near impunity.
“They are using apps like Telegram and Kik, that allow for encrypted communication which police simply struggle to intercept.”
The lawyer, who has represented grooming gang offenders across the UK, originally began his work in Manchester but soon found he was overwhelmed with cases spreading across the North into West Yorkshire.
He says he was stunned the first time a client described one of his victims as “street rats”, “white trash” and “vermin”, but quickly realised the men - who he says were predominantly of Pakistani heritage - had total disregard for white girls whose cultural beliefs “dehumanised” them.
Girl One agreed, adding: “They never saw me as a human being, let alone a child. I was nothing to them, just something to be abused for their own gratification. Race definitely played a part and is something we just cannot ignore.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “Sexual and criminal abuse by gangs are among the most horrific crimes imaginable.
“We have established the Independent Inquiry into Grooming Gangs to get the answers that victims and survivors of these horrendous crimes deserve.
“The Inquiry has full statutory powers to compel evidence. Allegations or evidence of criminality will be referred to the National Police Operation into Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation (Operation Beaconport), which is running in parallel.
“This week, we announced a historic £100 million will drive a crackdown on child sexual abuse, including £38m for Operation Beaconport.”