A man who used social media and gaming platforms to groom and blackmail girls has been sentenced to a 30-year custodial term at Chester Crown Court.
Bilal Kazi, 27, of Birmingham, was sentenced on 13 November after pleading guilty to child sexual abuse offences. The court also imposed an additional eight-year extended licence period, a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a restraining order.
Cheshire Police said its investigation identified 70 victims across 28 UK police force areas. That figure describes the people identified during the investigation; it is not a count of the offences to which Kazi pleaded guilty.
The case involved deception, coercion and threats to share sexual images. Detectives said Kazi pretended to be a teenage boy and persuaded girls that they were in a relationship with him. Once he had gained their trust, he pressed them to send images and videos and threatened to distribute material he already held if they refused further demands.
Investigation across force areas
Cheshire Police took over an investigation in May 2022 after a victim reported abuse to Derbyshire Police. Officers established that Kazi had previously lived in Chester, but he had left the area. He was arrested at Heathrow Airport in July 2023 after returning to the UK.
Examination of his phone revealed the scale of his online activity. Officers initially identified 180 potential victims from digital evidence. Specialist officers then worked to identify the children involved, using account names and other information recovered from the device.
Police said the 70 identified victims were contacted and given an opportunity to disclose their experiences. The investigation drew on digital forensics and victim identification teams as well as officers working across different force areas.
The offences to which Kazi pleaded guilty included causing children to engage in sexual activity, blackmail and making indecent photographs of children. Prosecutors said he was already a registered sex offender and subject to a Sexual Risk Order when he committed some of the offences.
Custody and extended licence
The 30-year custodial term and the additional eight-year licence period are distinct parts of the sentence. Under an extended sentence, a prisoner can apply for parole after serving two-thirds of the custodial term. Being eligible for parole does not mean release is automatic at that point.
The Sexual Harm Prevention Order and restraining order were imposed alongside the prison sentence. The extended licence provides for supervision after release and is intended to help protect the public.
Detective Constable Georgia Hughes said the harm from online offences should not be underestimated. She said many of the girls had been left fearful of what Kazi might do if they did not comply and that some had carried that fear for years.
The victims of sexual offences have lifelong anonymity. Protecting that right means avoiding details that could identify an individual, including information that might appear innocuous on its own but become identifying when combined with other facts.
Help for children and families
For a child experiencing threats or pressure online, the responsibility lies with the person exploiting them, not with the child. A young person can talk to a trusted adult or contact Childline on 0800 1111. If anyone is in immediate danger, call 999.
Childline’s free Report Remove service helps people under 18 in the UK report sexual images or videos of themselves so that the material can be assessed for removal. The service can act on material that is publicly available online, but cannot remove files saved on another person’s device or within encrypted messages.
Parents and carers who discover that a child is being blackmailed can contact the police and offer reassurance without blaming or punishing the child. They should not circulate any sexual images and can ask officers how to preserve messages and other evidence safely.
