Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable issues grooming gang apology: ‘We let victims down’

Lucy Leeson

15 January 2024 at 12:10 pm

The Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police has issued an apology to grooming gang victims in Rochdale.

His apology comes following a report into grooming in the town found police failed to protect hundreds of young girls.

In a statement on Monday (15 January), Stephen Watson said: “It remains a matter of profound regret that victims of child sexual exploitation in Rochdale in the early 2000s were failed by Greater Manchester Police – to them, I apologise.”

Mayor of Manchester Andy Burnham said the report into grooming in Rochdale was “hard to read”.

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