"You put yourself forward to the jury as an upstanding member of the community, but you hid a secret."
A former councillor has been jailed for 17 years after he sexually abused a boy. He assaulted the minor while he posed as a religious teacher and took him to a mosque.
57-year-old Zamurrad Khan appeared at Bradford Crown Court on 1st September 2017.
He received an 18 year extended prison sentence, 17 of which he will spend in jail. The 57-year-old will then spend 1 year on an extended license. In addition, the judge ordered him to register with police as a sex offender.
The jury found him guilty of two charges of buggery and one count of indecency with a child. All of which he denied.
The crimes took place almost 40 years ago, during an 18-month period between the 1970s and 80s. Zamurrad Khan was aged between 18-19 years old when he abused the child.
During the trial, the jury heard how the former councillor assaulted the young boy in an alleyway. He reportedly told the child to remove his lower clothing.
Zamurrad Khan also abused the minor in the back of a sports car. But he would tell the boy’s parents they were going to a mosque.
An investigation into the former councillor began after the boy, now a man in his 40s, reported a complaint to police in 2015. He explained that during the abuse, he felt too scared to tell his parents.
The judge, Recorder Sophie Drake revealed more on the impact this had on the former councillor’s victim, saying:
“He has felt shame and embarrassment and neglected himself. He did not get the job that he really deserved.”
Zamurrad Khan’s barrister, Ray Singh, pointed out how his client had served the city as a director of Bradford‘s Trident regeneration project. Singh also added he had shown a positive character and committed no crimes since.
However, he will now face 17 years in jail for his crimes. Delivering the verdict, Recorder Drake said: “You put yourself forward to the jury as an upstanding member of the community, but you hid a secret.”
As the 57-year-old received his sentence, the public gallery witnessed a disturbance as a person shouted: “It’s a stitch up.” Police arrested a man and detained him in cells until 4pm for swearing and shouting at the jury.
After the trial, Detective Constable Kevin McConnell commented:
“We would like to thank the victim for his courage in reporting Khan’s crimes and we hope this outcome will give him some closure and allow him to move on from the abuse he suffered as a child.”
The Detective Constable also added that he hopes the case will encourage other victims to speak out on abuse they have suffered from.
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