LONDON: A major development has been made in Sara Sharif murder case as the court convicted the father and stepmother of the 10-year-old girl of her murder after a trial which heard harrowing details of her treatment before her killing.
Sara Sharif was found dead in August 2023 at her home in Woking, a town southwest of London, after what prosecutors say was a campaign of “serious and repeated violence”.
The family fled to Pakistan immediately after Sara Sharif was killed, before they were arrested in September 2023 at London’s Gatwick airport after flying from Dubai.
Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors at the start of the trial that Sara had suffered a litany of injuries, including burns, broken bones and bite marks.
Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 43, and his wife Beinash Batool, 30, stood trial at London’s Old Bailey court charged with her murder, which they denied.
The jury convicted Urfan Sharif and Batool of Sara’s murder. Sara’s uncle Faisal Malik, 29, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of causing or allowing Sara’s death.
Sharif and Batool will be sentenced in Sara Sharif murder case on Dec 17.
Emlyn Jones told jurors at the onset of the Sara Sharif murder case trial that Urfan Sharif had called police and said: “It wasn’t my intention to kill her, but I beat her up too much.”
Sharif gave evidence and initially denied responsibility for Sara’s death. He accepted slapping Sara to discipline her, but denied beating her in a regular or sustained way.
But Urfan Sharif, under questioning from Batool’s lawyer Caroline Carberry, later said he took “full responsibility” for his daughter’s death.
Lawyers for Batool, who did not give evidence, said Urfan Sharif was violent and controlling and that she was scared of him.
During cross-examination by prosecutor Caroline Carberry KC, Sharif admitted he “takes full responsibility” for Sara’s death. He acknowledged using a cricket bat and a metal pole to inflict severe injuries over a prolonged period. According to his statements, his actions were partly fueled by frustration over Sara’s episodes of soiling herself and vomiting, which he interpreted as “naughtiness.”
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