Who is Bilal Kazi, Indian student jailed for 30 years in UK for grooming 70 girls online? Youngest victim was 10

Bilal Kazi, a 27-year-old Indian national of Mumbai, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison by a UK court for grooming and sexually exploiting 70 girls online. He pleaded guilty to multiple child sexual abuse offences and was described by British authorities as a "serial online groomer". Kazi, who was pursuing a PhD in chemistry in the UK, used social media and gaming platforms to target girls, posing as a white British teenage boy named "Reece" and building relationships with his victims before manipulating them into sending explicit photos and videos.

The investigation began after a 13-year-old girl reported Kazi to Derbyshire Police in November 2021, and led to 70 victims identified across 28 UK police forces, with the youngest victim being 10 years old. Kazi was arrested at Heathrow Airport in July 2023 and has been sentenced to 30 years in prison, followed by eight years on extended licence.