SCOTLAND Yard is probing dozens of grooming gang cases in the capital despite mayor Sadiq Khan claiming there are “no reports” in London.
Sir Mark Rowley, Met commissioner, told the Assembly that of a staggering 9,000 historic cases 2,200 were reviewed and 1,200 remained in scope.
Sadiq Khan previously denied that grooming gangs existed in the capitalCredit: PA
Sir Mark Rowley appeared before the London assembly yesterday to discuss Scotland Yard’s ongoing inquiry into historic grooming gang casesCredit: London Assembly
It comes after the Mayor of insisted earlier this year there was “no indication” and “no reports” grooming existed in the capital.
The Met previously said it was pursuing “several live investigations” after a slew of victims came forward amid Khan’s denials.
Speaking to the London Assembly, Mark Rowley warned against using “” as an umbrella term.
He sited incidents of abuse within families, in institutions, between peers and online.
He also said the ethnicities of the suspects in the Met’s investigations varied and are “reflective of the diversity we see in the city.”
The commissioner added that a team of 26 specialist child exploitation officers were looking through the cases to find ones that could be reopened.
Rowley added: “We do not see the typology reported elsewhere, where there have been cases of offending committed by groups of being the sole or majority case.
“It will be part of the picture but it’s not dominating in a way that is being reported elsewhere.”
All of the 9,000 cases of child sexual exploitation under review by Yard were reported and closed between January 1, 2010, and March 31 this year.
Khan has that there were grooming gangs operating in the capital but has now been accused of “taking the mickey” out of victims.
Initially only 197 cases were submitted to the National Agency in June but that surged to 9,000 last month.
Khan has come under fire from Conservative members of the London Assembly for dismissing questions about the prevalence of “rape gangs” across the capital.
Appearing alongside Mark Rowley yesterday the Mayor of London was grilled on his previous denials.
Susan Hall, the Conservative leader in the London Assembly, confronted Khan directly over his words.
Tory leader Susan Hall gave the mayor a grilling over his previous denialsCredit: London Assembly
Khan was asked if he was aware of the grooming gang in his constituency when he was Labour member for TootingCredit: Getty
She said there was “clearly” an issue with grooming gangs in London that the mayor pretended not to know about.
The Conservative leader said she was “completely appalled” by – who had dismissed her questions on the topic in January.
When asked at the start of the year he had claimed he didn’t know what Tory leader Susan Hall meant by “rape gangs.”
Hall said: “The rape victims knew exactly what I was talking about and so did most people.
“Would you like to apologise to the victims of the who saw you dismiss this?”
Susan Hall had repeatedly raised the issue with the mayor but was given terse responses.
During his quizzing at yesterday’s meeting Khan said it was a “serious and emotive issue.”
He would go on to add that he hoped to clarify what the term “” meant.
In the explosive meeting Hall would ask the mayor if he had known about the grooming gang in his constituency when he was Labour member for Tooting.
The Mayor of London replied: “It’s because I care about victims that I appointed the first ever victims’ commissioner in London.
“It’s because of my experience as an MP and a lawyer that I have invested so much in supporting victims.”
The mayor admitted that London had “issues in relation to child sexual exploitation” and “child sexual abuse.”
However he would go on to claim that these cases were different to those seen elsewhere in .
It is not the first time Khan has come under fire for his claim.
Shadow home secretary previously accused the mayor of deliberately turning a blind eye to the growing scandal.
He said: “This revelation of the Met police having 9,000 grooming gang cases to reassess makes it clear Labour and are facilitating a cover up.”
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London told The Sun: “Any individuals or grooming gangs exploiting children for sex are utterly vile and Sadiq wants justice for every single victim of these horrific crimes.
“Throughout his time as Mayor, he has led efforts to strengthen the protection of children from exploitation and harm – providing vital investment in specialist services and driving forward reforms in the way the Met protects children.
“The truth is, it’s only because Sadiq demanded full transparency that the Met has now said it is reassessing all historic cases of child sexual exploitation in London.
“In the past, the Mayor has been asked questions regarding Rotherham-style grooming gangs operating in London, which had specific characteristics in terms of the ethnicity of the perpetrators and victims.
“The Met has said that the pattern tends to be more complicated in London, with the ethnicity and nationality of the perpetrators and victims reflecting the diversity of London.
“But the Mayor has never suggested that we don’t have terrible cases of child sexual exploitation and grooming in London, and he has been clear that the Met must leave no stone unturned in pursuing justice for the victims.”
The Sun has contacted the for comment.
Khan and Rowley appeared together to discuss the Met’s ongoing review of 9,000 historic casesCredit: Reuters 
