Six men will appear at Mold Magistrates Court next week to face a total of 27 charges of serious sexual assault, following an investigation by the…

Five men have been charged with a total of 26 offences of indecent assault, buggery and attempted buggery and have been bailed to appear at Mold on June 12.

A sixth man, from the Wrexham area, has been summonsed to appear at the same court hearing, charged with one offence of indecent assault against one of the same two boys.

All the offences are believed to have been committed at addresses in the Wrexham area.

These charges arise from the National Crime Agency’s Operation Pallial, an investigation into recent allegations of historical abuse in the care system in North Wales.

The five men charged and bailed are:

Mark Granger, (aka Gary Cooke), aged 63, from Leicester. He is charged with three counts of indecent assault and two counts of buggery. (Cotsbrook Hall, Bersham Hall, Bryn Estyn, Pentre Saeson)

Marc Roy Norry, aged 54, from Connah’s Quay, North Wales. He is charged with four counts of indecent assault, one count of buggery and one count of attempted buggery. (Not named in Waterhouse)

David Lightfoot, aged 71, from Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, has been charged with three counts of indecent assault, one count of buggery and one count of attempted buggery. (Not named in Waterhouse)

Edward Huxley, aged 69, from Maidenhead, Berkshire, has been charged with two counts of indecent assault. (Not named in Waterhouse)

Keith Stokes, aged 61, from Farndon, Chester, has been charged with three counts of indecent assault, three counts of gross indecency, one count of buggery and one count of attempted buggery. (Not named in Waterhouse)

A 62-year-old man from Wrexham has been summonsed to appear at the same court to face one count of indecent assault. This man will be named following his court appearance.

A total of nine people have so far been charged with offences by Operation Pallial.