A 21-year-old man has been found guilty of repeatedly raping a young boy and forcing him to perform sex acts during a campaign of abuse lasting three and a half years. Daniyal Hussain, dressed in a white open-necked shirt and a black coat, showed no emotion as the verdict was delivered.

The jury reached the unanimous decision after five hours of deliberation at Teesside Crown Court on Tuesday. The trial, which concluded after just over a week, heard that Hussain admitted to the horrific abuse in texts and notes found on his phone, Teeside Live reports.

However, the defendant and his mother claimed that these were false confessions, used to stop the little boy's mother from confronting them again with her allegations. Giving evidence at the trial, Hussain's mother Shabana Hussain told the packed courtroom that she made her son admit to rape to stop the boy's mother from "harassing" them.

The social worker explained that the young victim's mother had shown up at her home, saying that her son had started crying and told her what Hussain had done to him. Under cross-questioning, Mrs. Hussain said: "It's not my finest hour.

"The boy's mother came to our house. She wasn't going to believe anything else. She kept saying 'just admit it for my sanity so that's what I told Daniyal to do."

It was previously revealed that Hussain had messaged his mother claiming he had "demons" and that he would seek help. "I'm so sorry. I've failed everyone" he wrote in the text.

Another note found on Hussain's phone by police read: "There is nothing that I can say ever that will make everything better. Not in a million years. I have failed my family."

Hussain also took to the stand for cross-questioning. He repeated his mother's claims and said that he had admitted to sexually assaulting the boy over text so the victim's mother would leave his family alone.

However, Aisha Wadoodi, prosecuting, said Hussain confessed to the abuse because he was guilty of the abuse and of pretending to be mentally ill - by saying he was hearing voices in his head. It was the prosecution's case that, when Hussain's family was confronted by the boy's mum, they put pressure on her not to report it to the police.

Hussain was granted bail but warned he would be jailed when he is sentenced next year.

The public gallery in the courtroom remained full throughout the trial. Relatives of the victim wept as details of the sexual abuse were read out.

Hussain, of Thackeray Grove in Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, will be sentenced for four counts of the rape of a boy under 13, and four counts of causing a child to engage in sexual activity, on January 12, 2023.

References:

dailyrecord.co.uk