Victoria’s diary part of new abuse inquiry
17 years after her death, police have recovered the 15-year-old’s journal. reports
ADIARY written by a teenage victim of sexual abuse has been recovered by police - 17 years after her death.
The journal will now play a significant part in an ongoing new inquiry into the abuse of Victoria Agoglia.
Victoria, who often used her stepfather’s surname moved to Rochdale and lived in Bernard Street, Syke.
Paramedics were called to a house on Sussex Street in Rochdale and found Victoria collapsed. She died five days later.
GMP became aware of the existence of the diary last year, but only obtained it last month.
It had been in the possession of Manchester council.
Victoria’s loved ones have been asking for her abuse to be investigated ever since her death, aged 15, in 2003.
Victoria, who was in the care of Manchester council, died after she was injected with heroin.
A damning report published in January said a coroner’s narrative verdict recorded at her inquest ‘significantly underplays the coercion and control she was subject to’ in terms of child sexual exploitation.
The report represents the findings of the first part of a review into how child sexual exploitation is dealt with in Greater Manchester and considers a police operation launched in 2004 in response to Victoria’s death.
Operation Augusta was designed to investigate the sexual abuse of children predominantly in care in south Manchester, with the report identifying up to 97 potential paedophiles and around 57 potential victims.
But the review, commissioned by Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham in 2017, found Augusta was discontinued in July 2005 due to resourcing.
This was despite police and other authorities amassing colossal evidence against the perpetrators.
A number of the men identified went on to commit, and be convicted of, sex crimes.
Victoria, who had been in care since the age of eight, disclosed two months before her death to her social worker and a substance misuse worker that an older man was injecting her with heroin, the report found.
Operation Greenjacket, was launched by GMP in May 2018, aimed initially at re-investigating child exploitation in 2004/05.
The force was strongly criticised after the grooming investigation, prompted by the death of Victoria was closed down.
Assistant Chief Constable Mabs Hussain, who is leading Operation Greenjacket, said there has been a sea-change in the force’s approach to dealing with child sexual exploitation.
The scope of Green Jacket has grown as result of GMP and Manchester council reviewing historic files and speaking to victims and alleged perpetrators.
This has uncovered additional historic information and victims that were not seen by the original 2005/04 investigation.
It means the number of victims has grown from the original 25 reviewed in the report commissioned by the mayor to more than 50.
In a statement GMP said: “GMP first became aware of the existence of this diary in May 2019. The diary was subsequently handed over to GMP detectives by Manchester City Council in August 2020.
“As this is a live investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment further.
“Our thoughts remain with the family of Victoria.
“Any victim of child exploitation is encouraged to contact police on 0161 856 2124 or via opgreenjacket@gmp. police.uk
“Even if victims don’t wish to pursue a criminal justice outcome, specialist officers from GMP are available to listen to them and ensure they receive personalised support.”
A Manchester council spokesperson said: “We have proactively worked with Greater Manchester Police to support Operation Green Jacket and share the determination of all involved to bring perpetrators to justice.
“We have shared the diary with GMP as quickly as we could within the correct legal processes. We are also assisting the coroner with inquiries.
“The diary - which parties were aware of at the relevant time - and all matters relating to Victoria are subject to a live police investigation and ongoing coronial inquiries and as such it would be inappropriate for us to comment further on the detail.”
It is understood the council would refute any suggestion they had been sitting on the diary.
In January GMP said that one man had been arrested and another questioned under caution over the abuse of Victoria. Both were released under investigation.
A council source said: “Manchester council has been in possession of a diary belonging to Victoria.
“The police found out about it last year and it has taken a long time for them to get it. Questions are being asked as to why. The contents are horrible. It is very odd that it was not made available sooner.”
The report issued in January said: “Having considered both the harrowing experience of Victoria and that of many of her contemporaries in public care in Manchester in the review team’s sample, we cannot understand how the coroner felt able to conclude his remarks with the following statement: ‘It is absolutely essential also that the public remain confident about the quality of care and support afforded to children cared for within the child protection system’.”
The report found young people ‘were not well served or protected by the statutory agencies’ police and councils.
Both police and Manchester council have now issued apologies.
Victoria, who was known as Vicky and used her stepfather’s surname of Byrne, spent time in care homes across Greater Manchester.
She had ambitions of becoming a hairdresser and a model.
In the two years before her death, the report found Victoria was repeatedly ‘threatened, assaulted and returned to her residential unit intoxicated’.
Distressed, the report said she disclosed she was involved in sexual exploitation and alleged rape and sexual assault.
It emerged she had told repeatedly of her suffering at the hands of older, Asian men, who the report’s authors said appeared to ‘operate in plain sight’ in and around care homes.
“While we found evidence of multi-agency meetings, not one of these occasions resulted in a child protection investigation to protect Victoria from significant harm,” the report added.
“Although Victoria was cared for by Manchester City Council, a man who had been previously identified as her so-called ‘pimp’ was given permission to visit her in her accommodation three times a week.”
Victoria’s grandmother, Joan Agoglia, wept as she told a press conference to launch the report that Victoria was regularly beaten by her abusers.
A man aged 50 at the time was cleared of manslaughter but admitted two offences of injecting Victoria with heroin and was jailed for three and a half years.