Rochdale grooming gang leader who raped and impregnated 13-year-old escapes UK

A Rochdale grooming gang leader who impregnated a 13-year-old girl is believed to have fled the UK. "Vile" child rapist Adil Khan now faces a lifetime ban from Britain after fighting against deportation for nearly a decade. The paedophile claimed that removing him from the UK would breach his human rights due to his teenage son needing a "role model". However, Greater Manchester Police discovered that Khan, 55, was not at home when they conducted routine post-prison release checks last month.

A spokesman for the force said: "On our most recent visit on Oct 21 [Khan] was not there and our inquiries have since established he has left the country. We are working alongside the Home Office in our efforts to locate him." The British-Pakistani national previously renounced his Pakistani citizenship to block the government from sending him there.

His fleeing the UK comes amid negotiations between British and Pakistani governments to send him to Pakistan - they were reportedly "close" to an agreement.

Paul Waugh, the Rochdale MP, told The Telegraph: "If this vile paedophile is no longer in the country, that's very welcome news. His victims, and many of my constituents in Rochdale, will want reassurance that he's gone for good.

"The public will also want more details of his exact whereabouts, but I've been told by the Home Office that he will never be allowed to set foot in the UK ever again."

He added: "Ever since I was elected, I've been working hard to get Adil Khan and his fellow abuser Abdul Rauf deported to Pakistan. Khan may be gone, but Rauf needs to be gone too."

Khan was jailed alongside Qari Abdul Rauf, 56, in 2012 as ringleaders of a group of nine Asian men who sexually assaulted 47 girls. The victims, some of whom were as young as 12, were plied with drinks and drugs over a two year period in Rochdale.

Nearly a decade ago, a judge ordered both men to be deported to Pakistan, but they renounced their citizenship just days before a court appeal against the government order.

The pair successfully argued that they would be left "stateless" if they were deported. Due to Pakistan refusing to accept them, they have been able to remain in the UK.

A Home Office spokesman said: "Our thoughts are with the victims and survivors of grooming gangs who have shown immense bravery throughout their pursuit of justice. Adil Khan is a vile man who has fled the country and will not be able to return."