Key facts
- Three men, Basharat Dad, Nasser Dad, and Reza Tavakoli, have been charged with multiple offenses including rape and trafficking.
- The charges relate to the alleged abuse of two teenage girls in Rotherham between March 2004 and December 2009.
- The investigation is part of the National Crime Agency's Operation Stovewood, focusing on child sexual exploitation.
- Basharat Dad faces 13 counts of rape, four of trafficking, and one of false imprisonment.
- Nasser Dad faces two counts of rape, and Reza Tavakoli faces one count of rape and one of false imprisonment.
- Operation Stovewood was initiated following the 2014 Jay Report on child abuse in Rotherham.
Three men have denied charges of rape, trafficking, and exploitation following an investigation into the abuse of two teenage girls in Rotherham. Basharat Dad, 40, Nasser Dad, 44, and Reza Tavakoli, 54, appeared at Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday. The alleged offences occurred between March 2004 and December 2009, when the victims were between 13 and 16 years old.
Basharat Dad pleaded not guilty to 13 counts of rape, four offences of trafficking within the UK for sexual exploitation, and one offence of false imprisonment. Nasser Dad denied two counts of rape, and Reza Tavakoli denied one charge of rape and one of false imprisonment.
The arrests were made as part of the National Crime Agency's (NCA) Operation Stovewood, which is investigating child sexual exploitation in the South Yorkshire town between 1997 and 2013. The NCA stated that Stovewood is the single largest law enforcement operation of its kind undertaken in the UK, identifying over 1,100 children involved in exploitation, almost all of whom were girls.
Operation Stovewood was established in the wake of the 2014 Jay Report, which found that at least 1,400 girls were abused by gangs of men, primarily of Pakistani heritage, in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013. The estimated cost of Operation Stovewood is around £90 million.
Basharat Dad and Nasser Dad are in custody, while Reza Tavakoli was granted bail. Their trial is scheduled for November 2026, with a case management hearing set for October 3.