A supply teacher has pleaded guilty to 21 child sex offences after secretly photographing more than 100 girls up their skirts at schools across Greater Manchester — an investigation that began when a parent spotted an image of their child in school uniform circulating on social media.
Abusali Rahman, 36, from Salford, admitted the offences at Bolton Crown Court on Wednesday, with sentencing adjourned until 1 September to allow a psychiatric report to be prepared. His defence barrister Emma Kehoe told the court he “was going through a mental health crisis at the time.”
Rahman, a British national of Bangladeshi ethnicity, was arrested in June 2025 after a parent raised a concern about an image of their child in school uniform being circulated by a social media account. The discovery of further images prompted an upskirting investigation by Greater Manchester Police’s Online Child Abuse Investigation Team.
Thirteen girls, aged between 13 and 16, have been identified at seven high schools in Bury, Bolton and Salford. Police are now urgently appealing for four further girls from two other high schools whose photographs were recovered but who have not yet been identified.
The offences, which took place between December 2023 and June 2025, spanned multiple schools where Rahman worked as an English supply teacher after qualifying in 2023. The charges he pleaded guilty to include 12 counts of taking indecent photographs of children by upskirting; four counts of publishing an obscene article involving AI-generated sexualised images; three counts of making AI-generated indecent images of children; one count of distributing an upskirting image to another user; and one count of operating equipment beneath a person’s clothing without consent.
Crown Prosecution Service senior prosecutor Alex Mann said the case was one of horrifying abuse of trust, adding that Rahman had first shared sexualised deepfake images online before escalating to upskirting and voyeurism in schools. “The guilty pleas entered today means he will face the consequences of his appalling actions, without victims having to prolong their suffering by reliving their experiences at trial,” he said.
Detective Chief Superintendent Rebecca McKendrick, head of GMP’s Public Protection Division, said her team had “painstakingly worked through the evidence to build a case against Rahman.” She said victims had been “at the forefront of our investigation” and that parents, guardians and schools had been kept informed and supported throughout.
GMP confirmed they have been in contact with all schools where Rahman worked in the North West since he became a qualified teacher in July 2023, and that no further criminal offences have been identified. Safeguarding teams are involved and specialist support has been made available to those affected. Rahman has not worked in schools since his arrest.
Police are asking anyone who may recognise themselves or know of other potential victims to come forward.
