Between 2008 and 2010, a child abuse ring operating in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, was known as the “grooming gang” phenomena. The gang trafficked, prostituted, raped, and abused girls aged 13 to 15.

One victim was forced to have sex with at least 20 guys in one night, and another was forced to drink vodka while being raped by “countless males.”

The criminals would frequently give the females to their friends as a way of repaying a debt. The victims, many of whom came from troubled homes and were thus especially susceptible, were bribed with drugs, booze, and fast food before being abused at “chill houses” around the north of England. One of the victims, a 13-year-old girl, became pregnant and underwent an abortion. Several of the guys involved were apprehended, prosecuted, and convicted. But not all of them.

When one of the victims was 14, she was targeted by gang members and given the bogus name Amber in Three Girls, a BBC One drama about the abuse. Amber had been placed on the child protection registry as a kid at risk of sexual and emotional abuse and neglect after a difficult upbringing.

An insatiable need for affection led Amber to a nightmare where she was exposed to brutal sexual torture.

She was supposed to be handled as a victim, but instead she was regarded as a culprit by the police, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), and even social services.

With the help of Stephen Watson, Greater Manchester’s Chief Constable, Amber and two other victims of the Rochdale grooming gang got an apology on Tuesday (GMP). In one of the country’s most horrifying child sexual abuse scandals, their treatment represents a wide variety of disastrous failures.

Maggie Oliver, a former police detective who resigned in protest over the treatment of Amber, was with her when we met at a hotel in Rochdale last month.

To the age of 16, Amber was detained by uniformed cops who appeared at her mother’s residence.

The word they used to describe her was “madam,” she remembered, but she couldn’t recollect precisely what they said. It was a question I couldn’t answer. Prior to her release on bond, she was detained for many hours. An proper adult was never mentioned, and her mother was not permitted to accompany her throughout the interview.

The abusers had forced Amber to escort several of her friends to the takeout where the ringleaders were operating from, and she was forced to comply. ‘It wasn’t like a forced thing,’ she said. You didn’t even have to say anything. She was a fragile youngster who had been sexually molested, controlled, and was living in dread as a result.

It would be another two years before the CPS decided to accept Amber as a victim and witness rather than a suspect and no further action was taken against her. During this time, the grooming gangs continued to prey on Amber, who was now eight months pregnant and living in a one-room shack. Only a few of the 56 males who were questioned by police on suspicion of abuse were brought to trial. As a result, a large number of them were still at large and unaccounted for.

Additionally, a guy who Amber was able to identify with a photo was holding a pistol to her head and threatening her. Not a single thing occurred. There wasn’t much of a police presence around us, actually,” she said. The fact that you’re from a squalid background didn’t concern them in the slightest. The people around you don’t give a hoot about your socioeconomic status.”

In early 2012, she met Oliver, and things began to change. In 2010, Oliver was hired as a detective and victim liaison officer for the grooming gangs investigation because of her previous expertise dealing with vulnerable victims.

Amber was right to be sceptical of the cops. Following a notification from the CPS that she was no longer being investigated, Oliver convinced her to participate in a series of video interviews and identification parades.

In light of the trauma she had through, I inquired as to how Amber had the courage to testify against her ex-boyfriend in front of the police. She said to me: “So no one else had the same experience. In order to keep my feelings private, I didn’t want anybody else to experience them.” With Oliver’s help, she was able to compile a list of abusers, complete with names, vehicle registration numbers, and other contact information. As part of the inquiry known as Operation Span, it was a significant aspect of the investigation.

During Amber’s 12 ID parades in a single day, she accurately identified 10 of her attackers. “I went home, pushed it to the back of my mind, to be honest,” she said thereafter. All of that stuff goes in a box in the back of my mind, where it’s safe and secure.

Oliver claims she saw a shift in tone from senior police before to the last interview, and thought they were attempting to drive this victim away. After the ID parade, Oliver was informed that Amber’s evidence would no longer be used. She refused to comply and was barred from communicating to Amber after she left.

A dark time loomed for Amber as a trial for the guys suspected of being in the grooming group was being planned. There was never a mention of her being no longer a victim, or that no one was going to be charged for the abuse she claims to have suffered, she claims.

Even though Amber had never been charged, arrested, or even warned about the grooming gang’s activities, the CPS decided to add her to the indictment as a co-conspirator while the other nine defendants were awaiting trial.

There may never have been a trial if it weren’t for Amber’s early evidence. During the early stages of Operation Span, she provided the police with a list of suspects’ aliases, phone numbers, and other identifying information. This led to charges being made against many more people, including those she had identified as perpetrators in the first place.

However, both the prosecution and the defence painted her as a pimp’s helper throughout her time in court. She was unable to defend herself since she was not a participant in the trial and hence did not provide testimony. As a result, she was dubbed the “Honey Monster” by the media. Despite a court order barring her from being identified, everyone in her immediate area knew who she was.

Amber’s children were taken from her by social services as a result of the court action. A few days before her second kid was due, Amber was summoned to a family court hearing where she was accused of child abuse and a threat to children.

The court finally dismissed the lawsuit after an exhausting 18 months of hearings. It took her five years, but social services finally had to apologise and compensate her.

A civil lawsuit was filed against GMP and the director of public prosecutions in 2019 by Amber and two other victims with the assistance of the Center for Women’s Justice (DPP). The DPP has so far refused, despite GMP’s ultimate settlement of the dispute, which included a personal apology from the chief constable. According to the indictment, it was “legally and strategically right” to include Amber on it, despite her claims that it was a mistake.

It has so far been impossible for the CPS to recognise any failure on its side, and instead they continue to trumpet this case as the first successful conviction of an organised grooming ring. Even if this is true, Amber has the impression that she was made to seem like the bad guy.

“It was worse than the abuse that what the police and CPS did to me… The apology will relieve some of the pressure I’ve been carrying.” As long as the nightmare continues, it will never be over. Some of the men who raped, battered, and tormented Amber are still visible to her in Rochdale. “I received a takeout a few weeks ago,” she says me, referring to a delivery person.

She has now been cleared of all charges. As a result, the police and social services have apologised to her and expressed regret for their actions.

In the middle of her quest for justice, Amber wrote to Oliver, “I decided to assist the police stop it happening to others.” “I had faith in the cops… that they would aid me this time.” I was interviewed for hours, reliving the torture I had suffered. No one from the police ever explained why I was no longer attending court, and I was really outraged about it. The reason why no one has ever been charged is a mystery.

As a result, I’ve had my reputation trashed. I try to block off any thoughts of the abuse from my mind. Even though I was a 14-year-old victim of these individuals, I had done nothing wrong. “I didn’t deserve to be punished for my mistakes.”