Three men deny involvement in Rotherham sexual exploitation as trial date set
A trial date has now been set for November next year
Three men accused of rape and other offences following an investigation into the abuse of two teenage girls in Rotherham have denied all the charges they face.
Basharat Dad, 40, Nasser Dad, 44, and Reza Tavakoli, 54, appeared at Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday.
Basharat Dad, formerly of Rotherham, 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, also formerly of Rotherham, pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape.
Tavakoli, of Upperthorpe, Sheffield, pleaded not guilty to one charge of rape and one of false imprisonment.
The trio will go on trial on November 23 2026, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC said.
The defendants were arrested 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 said the alleged offences happened in the Rotherham area between March 2004 and December 2009 and involved two female victims who were aged between 13 and 16 at the time.
Basharat Dad and Nasser Dad are in custody.
Tavakoli was bailed by Judge Richardson.
The defendants will appear again for a case management hearing on October 3.
Operation Stovewood was set up in the wake of the landmark Jay Report which found in 2014 that at least 1,400 girls were abused by gangs of men of mainly Pakistani heritage in Rotherham between 1997 and 2013.
The NCA says Stovewood is the single largest law enforcement operation of its kind undertaken in the UK and has identified more than 1,100 children involved in the exploitation between 1997 and 2013 - almost all girls.
Previous estimates have put the cost of Operation Stovewood at around £90 million.
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