Overview
- Survivors describe grooming that began with drug dealing and escalated to coerced sex, with victims reported as young as 13 to 15.
- Det Sgt John Knox says girls in gangs are the lowest rung and cannot refuse sex, estimating at least 60 exploited children in Lambeth and Southwark.
- The Met says it is strengthening its response with a child‑centred approach, expanded Child Exploitation Teams, and specialist training for more than 23,000 staff.
- Officials report offenders from varied ethnic backgrounds, with accounts naming both white men and South Asian men across different cases.
- The force is part of the national Operation Beaconport review and records about 2,000 child exploitation concerns annually, while debate continues over past mayoral statements on grooming gangs.