'She was so scared she carried a knife to the shops' - Mum reveals torment of child sex abuse

Today, her mother has described her torment after discovering her 15-year-old daughter had been a victim of child grooming and rape.

The Horwich teenager was raped by Hardi Hijrani, the fugitive Bolton sex offender thought to be hiding in the Middle East.

She was then abused by paedophile Alec Walker, a 49-year-old who pretended he was 20 years younger in a bid to win her trust.

The girl's mother, who cannot be named, said she put changes in her daughter's behaviour down to bullying.

But in fact she had been groomed — her trust won by two men who pretended to be her friend, but who ended up abusing her.

One night, the girl arrived home limping — she said she had fallen and hurt herself on the pavement.

But she had been dragged across a carpet while being raped.

Authorities in Bolton are today joining counterparts across Greater Manchester in trying to hammer home the warning signs of child sexual exploitation (CSE) to parents.

They hope these messages will prevent more victims being susceptible to the advances of the likes of Hijrani and Walker.

Victim's mum tells how daughter kept abuse secret

THE mother of a teenage rape victim has told how her daughter kept the abuse secret from her family and school for months.

She said her behaviour had changed but put it down to the fact she was possibly being bullied at school.

"I started to notice changes in her. She always came home on time but instead of coming in and talking about what she had been doing, she was going straight upstairs to her bedroom, " she said.

"She was wearing clothes that covered her up completely, and was covered in cuts on her legs, and I asked her what she was doing.

"She said she was self-harming because she was unhappy and that cutting herself took the pain away. I put it down to the bullying."

But bullying was not the issue. By this point, Hardi Hijrani had approached her, arranging to meet her in Queens Park.

When she arrived, Hijrani said another of her friends was at his home — but after they got there he raped her at knifepoint.

She kept it quiet for several months, because she was scared, eventually revealing the attacks to police.

Her mum recalled: "When the police came for the first time, she told them, but I wasn't allowed in the room.

"When she came out she put her arms round me and said, 'I'm sorry mum'. I said for what? 'He raped me mum. He raped me'.

"I could not believe it."

Hijrani, aged 21, was jailed for 12 years in December last year after being found guilty in his absence of two counts of rape.

His victim's mother said that Hijrani absconding has left her daughter terrified.

She said: "It is a big problem for her trying to come to terms with everything, knowing he is still out there.

"The other day she rang me and said, 'I am on the way to the shop and can you talk me through it? I've got a big knife in my pocket'.

"I said if you get picked up with that, you will be in trouble. She said 'he could be anywhere'."

The girl's nightmare did not end with Hijrani.

Alec Walker won her trust, providing the vulnerable girl with affection while saying he would protect her against Hijrani. He was actually terrorising her.

She told her mum her new boyfriend Walker was 19, although he had told her he was in his late 20s.

He was actually 49, and a man police described as a "psychopath" when later approached by the family.

Her mum said: "When we first went to the police, she went absolutely hysterical. I'm going to go out with him whether you like it or not'.

"She was screaming, saying she hated me. 'You don't know what you have done mum, you are going to die.We are all going to die'."

Walker even resorted to following the family round Bolton, texting his victim to tell her what she was doing and where she was, so she knew he was watching her.

Her mum said she received calls from him at all times of day and night, but her daughter would not answer.

She said: "She was getting in bed with me, saying she was lonely and frightened. The phone would go then, and she would be saying 'don't answer it mum'

"She said 'I don't know who it is,' but she did. She was crying 'no Alec no'.

"She was in the bedroom and I went in there and she was sobbing. I dragged the phone off her and shouted at him down the phone and then hung up on him. She was really paranoid after that."

In May last year, Walker, aged 52, of Chorley New Road, was jailed for 12 years, with the last five to be served on licence.

He had admitted four counts of sexual activity with a child.

It emerged in court that he had asked the schoolgirl if she was ready for a physical relationship 10 days after meeting her.

She was too terrified to argue against his demands.

Three years on, the now 18-year-old is hoping to start college in September.

She received help from the Exit Team at Breightmet House in Bury Road, but was frustrated that the court process denied her the chance to receive therapy until each case had been heard.

Her mother said: "They are absolutely brilliant there. The exit team and the police were fantastic. Coming here was like a safe haven for us."

"I knew things were wrong but I just put it down to bullying. I could never have dreamt of all the things that had happened to her.

"It distressed me but she said people treated her like she was normal at the club. Anyone who was kind to her was a friend. She was very vulnerable to it.

"Don't ignore any changes in behaviour or put it down to something in your own head. When your child is cutting themselves, your whole instinct as a mum should be to investigate.

"You know when your child's behaviour changes so don't ignore it. Get hold of her phone if you can, look at who she is ringing or messaging.

"They don't just change for no reason. It was easier for me to think it was because of bullying at school. "

Her daughter had first been targeted by a paedophile at the age of 13, when a man lured her and a friend into his house. He gave them drink and cigarettes and forced them to watch porn.

The man died shortly after, meaning the case was not pursued.

Her mother added: "I did not know what grooming was. I was worried that she might be attacked or raped on her way home. Not that these people were conning her.

The mother added: "It's hard to put it into words really. Unimaginable. You still feel like you've failed even though people are saying none of it was your fault.

"She still does not talk about it much now.

"None of us do. It has affected the whole family. It's like a cloud over us, and we never discuss it.

"It was terrible, horrific, You feel so depressed, and you get down and down. It has taken a terrible toll. I want to talk about it but none of the family will.

"Nobody wants to admit that something like this had happened to someone in their family."