UK to Deport 73-Year-Old Pakistani Grooming Gang Leader Known as ‘Daddy’

The UK government is exploring ways to deport Shabir Ahmed, a 73-year-old convicted grooming gang ringleader of Pakistani origin, after his release from prison reignited political pressure over his immigration status.

Ahmed, known to some of his victims as “Daddy,” was released on Thursday after serving 14 years in prison. He was sentenced in 2012 to 19 years by Liverpool Crown Court as one of nine men convicted over the sexual abuse of five girls in the Rochdale case.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has asked the home secretary to review the case and examine what legal options are available to remove Ahmed from the country. Downing Street described the case as especially serious and said the government wanted to ensure foreign offenders were deported wherever possible.

Ahmed moved to the UK from Gujrat, Pakistan, in the late 1970s when he was 14. He later gave up his Pakistani nationality to obtain British citizenship. However, British authorities have since stripped him of that citizenship, leaving him without legal nationality status.

Despite that, he cannot currently be deported because of a 1971 law that protects a small group of Commonwealth citizens who arrived in Britain more than 50 years ago.

A senior Pakistani government official told media outlet that Ahmed is not a Pakistani national and is effectively stateless. The official said Pakistan does not consider him a citizen and views him as “an alien.”

Following his release, Ahmed has reportedly been placed under strict license conditions. He is understood to be staying at a bail hostel, wearing a GPS tag, and barred from entering parts of Rochdale. He is also not allowed to return to his last known address in Oldham.

His release has prompted calls for action from across British politics. Rochdale Labor MP Paul Waugh urged authorities to use every available option to deport him, while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said her party would seek legal changes to close the loophole preventing his removal.

The case is likely to intensify debate in the UK over deportation law and whether serious offenders with no clear nationality status should still be protected from removal.