DOZENS of police officers and security staff were involved in an operation at Bradford Crown Court yesterday as the cases of 15 people accused of child sex offences were heard.

Security was tight as the 14 men and a 17-year-old youth made their first appearance at the crown court, amid speculation there would be a protest by members of the English Defence League.

A dozen uniformed police, including specialist intelligence liaison officers, stood guard outside outside the court building, with a number of officers also on duty inside the entrance and on the second floor outside the courtroom.

Extra security staff had also been drafted in by court management and searches were conducted of anyone entering the courtroom.

After the two-hour hearing - which was delayed for almost an hour by a fire alarm causing the building to be evacuated - the defendants on bail were briefly held in a side room while the court was cleared.

As they left the building, a large police presence was in place, including three video vans.

About ten people gathered outside the crown court building before the hearing, while five of them went inside and sat quietly at the back of the public gallery. They dispersed soon after the hearing ended.

During yesterday's preliminary hearing, the Recorder of Bradford, Judge Roger Thomas QC, confirmed the trial would be heard on November 9.

Prosecutor Michelle Colborne QC said an accurate estimate of the trial length was six weeks.

The 15 defendants, who were flanked by four security officers, occupied seats in all three rows of the dock. Because of the number of defendants, most of their solicitors had to sit in the jury box.

Members of the police investigation team, including the senior officer in the case, Detective Superintendent Chris Walker, sat in the public gallery.

All but one of the defendants are facing rape charges.

Khalid Mahmood, 34, whose address has been given as Ashfield Prison, South Gloucestershire, is charged with five allegations of rape.

Yasser Kabir, 24, of Belgrave Road, Keighley; and Tauqueer Hussain, 23, of Belgrave Road, Keighley, both face four allegations of rape, while Nazir Khan, 23, of Buxton Street, Keighley, is charged with three allegations of rape.

Israr Ali, 19, of Devonshire Street West, Keighley; Mohammed Sardar, 18, of Bradford Street, Lawkholme, Keighley; Saqib Younis, 29, of Bradford Street, Lawkholme, Keighley; Bilal Ziarab, 20, of Sedgwick Close, Manningham, Bradford; Sufyan Ziarab, 22, of Kendal Mellor Court, Keighley; Zain Ali, 20, of Buxton Street, Keighley; and Faisal Khan, 27, of Buxton Street, Keighley; all face two allegations of rape.

Rohail Iqbal, 21, of Skipton Road, Beechcliffe, Keighley; Rohail Hussain, 18, of Hawk Street, Lawkholme, Keighley; and the 17-year-old youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, face one allegation of rape.

Taxi driver Mohammed Akram, 62, of Holker Street, Keighley, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of sexual activity with a child under 16.

The offences are alleged to have occurred between May 2011 and June 2012. The majority of the allegations relate to one female victim who was aged between 13 and 14 at the time. One charge relates to a second victim who was 15 at the time of the alleged offence between January and May 2009.

The defendants will next appear in court on September 18 for a plea and case management hearing. Mahmood and Kabir were remanded in custody. The other defendants were granted bail on condition of residence and non-contact of prosecution witnesses.