I was raped 22 times by a grooming gang who used plastic bags instead of condoms, drugged and beat me from age 14
FILLING in yet another job application Christina O’ Connor’s heart is heavy, because she knows that regardless of qualifications or experience, she’s unlikely to ever find work.
Christina, 32, is a survivor of the biggest grooming scandal in the UK and even now, almost 20 years on from the harrowing abuse which ‘stole’ her childhood, she’s still unable to move on with her life.
She was the main prosecution witness in the Huddersfield Grooming Gang trials, in which 11 men were convicted of a staggering 43 offences against her, including 22 counts of rape. The gang was eventually jailed for a total of 221 years.
A happy child from a loving family, Christina was 14 when she fell into the clutches of an evil child sex ring.
She was beaten, raped repeatedly, mentally abused daily, and when her family were targeted she had sex with the gang members to keep her loved ones safe – some using plastic bags for contraception.
Christina was forced into a life of crime and the shadows of the abuse still hang over her to this day, even impacting her chances of employment.
And now, in light of the government’s decision not to hold a national inquiry into grooming gangs, Christina slams the lack of action and claims it is putting other young girls at risk.
She says: “A national inquiry was the perfect chance for the government to show that they support the victims, and they acknowledge the failures.
“It doesn’t surprise me that it was voted down, but it’s so disappointing. There were so many mistakes by the agencies who should have been looking after me. They will now never be held to account and yet the damage done to me and to my family impacts me every day.
“An inquiry is needed to make sure the same mistakes aren’t being made right now. Lessons must be learned. Sweeping it under the carpet just means the failings will be repeated with another young girl.”
I was made to have sex with complete strangers. I took lots of drugs, drank lots of vodka.
Christina O'Connor
Christina, from Huddersfield, West Yorks, who has bravely waived her right to anonymity, recalls being a ‘model pupil’ until the age of 13 when she suffered bullying because she was a little overweight.
As she waited for the school bus one day she met a group of men who plied her with pizza, vodka and cannabis.
It led Christina into the hands of monsters, who she was too frightened of to expose.
“I started skipping lessons because I was being bullied over my weight,” she explains.
“That was the start of it. I thought I was really grown up and cool. I’d never been drunk before, never tried drugs, and I thought this would help me fit in at school. For three months, they paid for everything; they had cars and money. I thought it was brilliant.
“I came from a very normal family. My mum was a chef, dad was a builder. I was targeted because I was lacking in confidence because of the bullying.”
But as time passed, Christina realised she was expected to do something in return for the ‘gifts’.
She says: “I was confused. One of the gang asked me to be his girlfriend but then they started passing me around. When I tried to leave the gang, after the first rape, they beat me up. They threatened to kill my mum.
“They started calling my house screaming abuse down the phone. Mum had no idea who they were.
“I thought I’d be the one in trouble, because I’d been playing truant and taking drugs. I didn’t want my parents to find out and so I did as the gang said.
I was taken to a hotel, raped by three men, and then just dumped there in the middle of the night.
Christina O'Connor
“I missed school most days. I was made to have sex with complete strangers. I took lots of drugs, drank lots of vodka. We were treated appallingly. The men either used no contraception or used plastic bags.
“They slapped us about, told us we were worthless, threatened us. They said we had built up debts and there was only one way to repay them.
“We had to have sex in front of other men, sometimes with one after another. I was taken to a hotel, raped by three men, and then just dumped there in the middle of the night.
“My parents were out of their minds driving round night after night looking for me. The police kept bringing me home but said there was nothing they could do. They told my parents to be stricter with me.
“I didn’t dare tell anyone the truth of what was happening because I thought it would cause more trouble. Ironically, I thought I was the one in the wrong.”
If Christina ever tried to refuse the gang, her family and their home were targeted.
Windows were smashed, shots were fired at the house, and one time a tyre on Christina’s dad’s car was loosened, causing it to fall off as he was driving.
Christina felt she had no choice but to do all she could to protect her loved ones.
She explains: “My parents had no idea who was behind it all. I felt I had to keep going out and having sex, to protect my family.
“There were other girls, all vulnerable in some way, as I was. The gang chose them because they were susceptible.”
Aged 15 Christina fell pregnant to one of the abusers and the gang forced her into having a termination. They then made her commit crimes; street robberies and thefts and at 19, she was sent to a young offender’s institution.
By now, she was pregnant again and went on to give birth in prison.
It was there that a breakthrough came. The prison chaplain heard Christina’s story and was convinced that her crimes were another aspect of the grooming.
Christina agreed to speak to the police, but it would be another three years before the police took action.
Christina says: “The prison term was actually my salvation; I turned my life around.”
Two years after her release, her police statement was found at the back of a filing cabinet, and Operation Tendersea, the investigation into the grooming gang was launched.
“I pushed everyone, including myself. I was too scared to tell anyone the truth.”
Christina O'Connor
The gang, masterminded by Amere Singh Dhaliwal, were jailed over three trials in 2018 at Leeds Crown Court for a total of 221 years.
Dhaliwal, 35 at the time, was jailed for life to serve a minimum of 18 years after being found guilty of 54 offences, including countless rapes of children.
After she was eventually released from prison, with convictions for burglary, theft and violence, Christina struggled to move on and holding down a job was impossible because of the trauma she’d been through.
She says: “I worked as a hairdresser for a while, but I had depression and anxiety, and I was self-medicating with alcohol. My employer was lovely, but she had to let me go in the end.”
Christina wanted to work in childcare but her applications were refused, because of her criminal record. She then tried to train as a chef but that fell through too.
She says: “People don’t always see past my convictions. The criminality was wrong, and I deeply regret it. I am really sorry to the people I hurt. But the robberies and the violence were all a part of the grooming process. I committed the offences under duress. I had to do them, to keep myself safe. If I disobeyed the gang leaders, then I suffered.
“It was survival of the fittest and I did as I was told even though I knew it was wrong.
“I feel I’m being punished over and over for the offences, and yet I wasn’t responsible for my own behaviour. The men used the robberies as a way of controlling me. I’d never have got into trouble with the police if it wasn’t for the gang. This is one of many issues which ought to be looked at by a public inquiry. Lots of the girls involved had criminal records, and it wasn’t their fault.”
Christina’s relationships have also suffered.
She says: “I have problems trusting people and letting them close to me. During my teenage years, when I was being groomed, I fell out with my family and friends, because my lifestyle was so chaotic.
“I pushed everyone, including myself. I was too scared to tell anyone the truth.”
Many of the other victims targeted by the gang – the only people who really knew what was happening – turned on each other too, under the influence of the gang leaders.
Christina says: “At first, the girls in the gang were all quite friendly with each other. We were going through a shared trauma. But gradually, we were made to turn on each other.
“The gang didn’t want us to have friendships. They wanted us isolated and alone, so we were less likely to speak up for ourselves.
“It was inhuman, pitting us against each other. Even though we have all been through the same ordeal, we can’t rely on each for support.
“Again, that wasn’t our fault. It was all a part of being groomed. Yet these issues still haunt me today. I was offered a couple of counselling sessions after the trial, but it was never the same counsellor twice and I just didn’t feel like they were listening. After that, there was nothing.
“It sometimes feels more like the authorities are working against me, than with me.”
My childhood was stolen from me, and I will never get it back. There is so much pain which still remains.
Christina O'Connor
Christina credits her dad, Michael, with supporting her throughout and it was his death from cancer, in March 2022, aged 75, which inspired her to write a book about her experiences: ‘Groomed By A Gang.’
She says: “I was always a Daddy’s girl. He was Irish and I was very proud of my Irish roots. “When I was out with the gang, he would drive round late at night in his truck, looking for me. He did his best, against all odds, to keep me safe. He was very supportive all through the trial and the sentencing too.
“In his final days, he urged me to speak out, to save the next generation, to save the next little girl who is bullied in school.
“I know he’s proud, looking down on me. I hope I can make a difference in his memory. If the government won’t speak out and help young girls, then I will.”
What is grooming and where to get help?
What is grooming?
According to the Metropolitan Police, “Grooming is when a person builds a relationship with a child, young person or an adult who’s at risk so they can abuse them and manipulate them into doing things.
“The abuse is usually sexual or financial, but it can also include other illegal acts.”
Types of grooming
Grooming can take place online or in person and it can happen over a short or long period of time – from days to years.
- Online and through social media
- In person
Signs of grooming
- Are they being secretive about how they’re spending their time?
- Do they have an older boyfriend or girlfriend?
- Do they have money or new things like clothes and mobile phones that they can’t or won’t explain?
- Are they drinking or taking drugs?
- Are they spending more or less time than usual online or on their devices?
- Do they seem upset or withdrawn?
- Are they using sexual language you wouldn’t expect them to know?
- Are they spending more time away from home or going missing for periods of time?
A person won’t know they’re being groomed, they will trust their abuser who is giving them lots of attention and gifts. Also, their groomer may have warned them not to talk to anyone about it.
How to get help and support
Grooming is an offence. If you suspect a person is being groomed, even if you’re not sure, please tell someone.
Is someone about to be attacked or hurt? Is a crime taking place right now? If yes, call 999 and ask for the police.
If it isn’t an emergency you can report grooming to the police on 101.
Charities and agencies:
But Christina remains haunted by the ghosts of her younger years and says support for the abuse victims isn’t good enough.
“Every day, I am reminded about what happened,” she explains. “I want to put it behind me, and move on, but I can’t. My childhood was stolen from me, and I will never get it back. There is so much pain which still remains.
“I haven’t had the kind of support I needed, and I don’t think any of the girls did. We were just left to swim – or sink.”
Read Christina’s full story in her book Groomed By A Gang (£8.99, Mirror Books).