Children as young as 9 are being repeatedly raped and abused as they are trafficked into London, it has been claimed. This comes just days after an Express investigation where the mayor has been accused of covering up evidence of grooming gangs in London.

The Mayor of London reportedly read reports of young girls being raped in hotels by groups of men while publicly denying there were any grooming gangs in the capital. The children were also plied with drugs and had their lives threatened, evidence uncovered by the Express and MyLondon shows. Pressure is mounting on Sadiq Khan after stating publicly that there are“no reports” of grooming gangs in the capital.

Although Khan states there is no indication that grooming gangs are operating in London, a 14-year-old and lies unconscious inside a London phone box after being targeted by a group of Bangladeshi men.

The Sun reports the case of one girl named Amy, who was repeatedly raped, abused and given drugs before being traded across the capital and Hertfordshire.

She is just one of countless young girls now-retired Met detective Jon Wedge has sought to find justice for – both during his time on the force and after.

He’s seen victims as young as nine among kids trafficked for prostitution on an industrial scale in London – including being taken to high-end Mayfair restaurants and saunas.

“It’s not my job to tell the mayor what to do – but it was my responsibility to report to my superiors at the Met, and they failed these children again and again,” he told The Sun.

Detective Wedge left the force in 2017 after turning whistleblower, claiming he was threatened with losing his own children, but feels the Met’s U-turn has come too little too late.

“Where was the outcry and the support when I was saying all this stuff a decade ago?” he asked.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp MP, accused Khan of being part of a “cover-up” and called for accountability.

He said: “It is shameful that the Mayor of London is claiming to have no indication that grooming gangs are operating in London despite personally responding to reports containing evidence of victims abused by grooming gangs in the city. It is clear Sadiq Khan is facilitating a cover up.”

The Metropolitan Police are reassessing 9,000 grooming gang cases in a new investigation, contradicting earlier claims by the London Mayor that no such incidents existed.

Initially, Mayor Khan asserted that there were “no reports” or “indications” that London was affected by the type of abuse seen in towns like Rochdale and Rotherham.

A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “Any individuals or gangs exploiting children for sex are utterly abhorrent. Sadiq is quite clear that they must face the full force of the law. These children have not only suffered terrible abuse at the hands of the perpetrators but have been woefully let down by the authorities meant to protect them from harm.”

They added: “The Mayor remains vigilant to emerging and changing threats around child exploitation and will continue to support and hold the Met to account to ensure it does everything possible to tackle child sexual exploitation in London.”

The Express reported earlier today that Grooming gang victims have hit out at a joint letter sent to them by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, accusing him of “making a mockery” of survivors as the inquiry faces further turmoil.

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “Any sexual offending against children is abhorrent but group-based offending, often characterised as ‘grooming gangs’, is particularly insidious and devastating in its profound impact on the children affected.

“The Met takes all allegations or concerns about child sexual exploitation and child criminal exploitation incredibly seriously and always investigates, following the evidence without fear or favour.

“Since 2022, there have been significant improvements to how the Met identifies and investigates group-based offending, including training for 11,000 frontline officers and the expansion of our child exploitation teams. In the last year we have solved three times more cases of child sexual exploitation – representing 134 more suspects charged.

“As part of the national reinvestigation into group-based child sexual exploitation recommended by Baroness Casey, we are currently undertaking a review of approximately 9,000 cases covering a 15-year period. In line with the IICSA definition, these include many cases of such as intra-familial, peer-on-peer and in institutional settings, along with those which do not fit the common understanding of a ‘grooming gang’.

“Our commitment to safeguarding all victims of such terrible offences and bringing those responsible to justice is absolute.”