User Reviews

This story would have been disturbing at the best of times but it felt all too real knowing that its broadcast was delayed by several months because a similar case was going through the courts at the time. The episode opens with Nikki witnessing an accident; a teenage girl was hit by a car. She manages to save the girl but can't understand why she is terrified of the Asian paramedic. It isn't long before the team are investigating two apparently unconnected deaths; a heavily tattooed man and a body found in a suitcase that came from the local airport, which they assume could have come from anywhere in the world. After visiting Shannon, the injured girl, in the hospital Nikki's keys and wallet go missing; it was of no surprise that she turns up at Nikki's house that evening; what is a surprise is that she is suffering from the same illness that killed the tattooed man. While all this is going on we see a group of Asian men grooming under-aged white school girls; telling them that they love them and that they are special but really holding them in contempt; all the time they intend to drug them and sell them for those wanting to pay for sex. With nobody wanting to talk the team will have a hard time proving what happened and as the police inspector investigating the case says; it is a minefield due to the 'cultural sensitivities' and the police fear of being accused of racial bias if they go after people of Pakistani origins.

While I hadn't read details of the real case of Asian men grooming white teenagers it was impossible not to think that what we are seeing on the screen might be similar. This made it much more disturbing than most cases dealt with in the series; it was shot in a way that made it believable; never looking glamorous and sometimes slightly blurred to emphasise the victims' drugged state. The acting was solid, both from the regular cast and the guest stars; this made the men and the young girls they preyed on seem real. They are quite a few moments that are particularly upsetting so it isn't an episode to be 'enjoyed' even if it was a story well told. Having watched it I can see why it was postponed; it was brave of the BBC to make it in the first place given the racial elements.