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The trial of an alleged grooming gang collapsed in December over a WhatsApp group set up by a number of jurors.
The jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court was hearing the case of six men accused of rape and other sexual offences against two teenage schoolgirls in Rochdale between 2003 and 2006.
Two months into the trial, which began in October 2025, one of the 12 jurors reported to court officials that several members of the jury had been messaging each other about a documentary about grooming gangs.
An investigation was launched and the entirety of the WhatsApp communications was examined by Judge Matthew Corbett-Jones.
In one chat exchange, a member of the group warned some of the others that viewing the broadcast was contrary to the judge’s directions, but one responded: “I’m going to watch it anyway,” followed by a smiley emoji, the court heard.
Another juror was also said to have messaged they too would watch the broadcast.
A new trial date has been set for August 2026. Credit: ITV News
The documentary may have contained information that would prejudice the jury or given them information that was ruled inadmissible.
The pair, along with the rest of the jury, were then questioned about the matter but said they had not actually viewed it.
Defence barristers suggested the pair may not be telling the truth, and Judge Corbett-Jones granted their applications to discharge the jury after they argued there were "real concerns" jurors were not following legal directions by conducting research into grooming gangs.
The judge ruled: “With considerable regret and disappointment, I have reached the conclusion that the multiplicity of problems which have now arisen and the uncertainty as regards these issues means that whatever course of action I take, unanswered questions remain.
“In light of that, no course of action that I can reasonably take can cure the position that now exists because of these multi-layered difficulties.”
Reporting restrictions on the reasons for the discharge of the jury were lifted on Friday following an application from the Manchester Evening News.
A retrial will take place in August.
Tahir Rashid, 54, from Rochdale; Mohammed Saleem, 46, from Rochdale; Iftaq Hussain, 45, of Shawforth; and Sucklane Shah, 46, of no fixed abode, all deny rape.
Arshad Mohammed, 55, of Rochdale, denies rape and assault by penetration, while Amjad Mahmood, 53, of Rochdale, denies rape, indecent assault, indecency with a child and assault by penetration.
Rashid has also pleaded not guilty to the rape of another young girl in the late 1980s.
The jury at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court was hearing the case of six men accused of rape and other sexual offences against two teenage schoolgirls in Rochdale between 2003 and 2006.
Two months into the trial, which began in October 2025, one of the 12 jurors reported to court officials that several members of the jury had been messaging each other about a documentary about grooming gangs.
An investigation was launched and the entirety of the WhatsApp communications was examined by Judge Matthew Corbett-Jones.
In one chat exchange, a member of the group warned some of the others that viewing the broadcast was contrary to the judge’s directions, but one responded: “I’m going to watch it anyway,” followed by a smiley emoji, the court heard.
Another juror was also said to have messaged they too would watch the broadcast.
The documentary may have contained information that would prejudice the jury or given them information that was ruled inadmissible.
The pair, along with the rest of the jury, were then questioned about the matter but said they had not actually viewed it.
Defence barristers suggested the pair may not be telling the truth, and Judge Corbett-Jones granted their applications to discharge the jury after they argued there were "real concerns" jurors were not following legal directions by conducting research into grooming gangs.
The judge ruled: “With considerable regret and disappointment, I have reached the conclusion that the multiplicity of problems which have now arisen and the uncertainty as regards these issues means that whatever course of action I take, unanswered questions remain.
“In light of that, no course of action that I can reasonably take can cure the position that now exists because of these multi-layered difficulties.”
Reporting restrictions on the reasons for the discharge of the jury were lifted on Friday following an application from the Manchester Evening News.
A retrial will take place in August.
Tahir Rashid, 54, from Rochdale; Mohammed Saleem, 46, from Rochdale; Iftaq Hussain, 45, of Shawforth; and Sucklane Shah, 46, of no fixed abode, all deny rape.
Arshad Mohammed, 55, of Rochdale, denies rape and assault by penetration, while Amjad Mahmood, 53, of Rochdale, denies rape, indecent assault, indecency with a child and assault by penetration.
Rashid has also pleaded not guilty to the rape of another young girl in the late 1980s.
