Three more held over child sex allegations

Three men have been arrested as part of an investigation into child sexual exploitation in Oldham.

Police arrested the men, aged 18, 25 and 30, on Tuesday on suspicion of sexual activity with a child under 16.

The two older men are also accused of conspiracy to commit a sexual offence with a child under 16 and human trafficking. All three have been bailed until July.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested in February on suspicion of rape as part of the same investigation and was also bailed until July.

The alleged victims — girls aged 15 and 16 from Derbyshire and Oldham — disclosed their ordeal to police investigating why they went missing from home.

The arrests were made as part of Project Phoenix, Greater Manchester’s multi-agency response to tackling child sex exploitation.