Ten held after Crewe religious group raids over modern slavery, sexual assault and forced marriage allegations

Ten people have been arrested over allegations of serious sexual offences, forced marriage and modern slavery among members of a religious group in Cheshire. More than 500 officers took part in raids at three addresses, as part of an investigation of the group in Crewe called the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light (AROPL), started by followers of Shia Islam at the start of the century, but whose beliefs have been rejected by Shiism. Cheshire Police said it was made aware last month of allegations that reportedly dated back to 2023. Police said the allegations related to one woman, who was a member at the time offences were said to have taken place. Police said there were currently about 150 members at the group's Crewe base. Of those arrested, the force said six were male and three female, with their nationalities including American, Mexican, Italian, Spanish and British. The force added that while those arrested were members of the group, officers were not investigating the religion itself. A further 13 people have been arrested on suspicion of public order offences, which do not relate to the investigation. The raids took place at about 08:50 BST, and a number of police vehicles