Sara Sharif’s dad and stepmother charged with murder hours after returning to UK from Pakistan a month after her death
SARA Sharif’s dad and stepmother have been charged with murder hours after returning to the UK from Pakistan.
The charges come a month after the 10-year-old was found dead at her home in Woking, Surrey, on August 10.
Urfan Sharif, 41, his partner Beinash Batool, 29, and his brother Faisal Malik were arrested on suspicion of murder after weeks on the run.
Sharif, Batool, and Malik left Britain with five children aged between one and 13 the day after Sara’s death.
On Wednesday morning Urfan and Beinash travelled on an Emirates flight from Sialkot in the Punjab province to Dubai.
That night, cops met the couple in Gatwick airport as their plane touched down.
Footage showed officers entering the plane as police vans waited on the tarmac below.
And last night, all three were charged with with murder and causing or allowing the death of a child.
They will appear in Guildford Magistrate’s Court today.
A Surrey police spokesman said: “Three people have been charged with the murder of 10-year-old Sara Sharif, whose body was found at her home address in Woking on 10 August.
“The Crown Prosecution Service has today (15 September), authorised charges against three people, including Sara’s father, Urfan Sharif, 41, of Hammond Road, Woking, Urfan’s partner, Beinash Batool, 29, of Hammond Road, Woking, and Urfan’s brother, Faisal Malik, 28, of Hammond Road, Woking.
“They have also been charged with causing or allowing the death of a child.
“All three have been remanded in custody to appear at Guildford Magistrate’s Court later today.
“Sara’s mother has been informed of this latest development and is being supported by specialist officers.”
Sara’s heartbroken mum Olga told the Sun the arrests were a “weight lifted” off her shoulders.
She added: “I am very happy that the police have made arrests.
“It is a huge relief and something I didn’t think would happen this quickly.
“I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders but there is still a long way to go before I feel closure.”
It comes after Interpol launched an international manhunt for the trio as police in Pakistan worked with cops in the UK.
Surrey Police said on Tuesday it was working to secure the safe return of Sara’s five siblings from Pakistan after a court ruled they’d be moved to a government childcare facility.
Sara’s grandfather Muhammad Sharif said he had been hiding the children in his home, but did not specify for how long.
A video emerged last week of Sharif and Batool reading a statement together about the horror.
Batool said her family “are willing to cooperate with the UK authorities and fight our case in court” – but moaned about the conditions they are living under.
Batool also said her family had gone into hiding as “everyone is scared for their safety”.
She added: “The kids are unable to attend school as they’re afraid to leave the house. No one is leaving the house.
“The groceries have run out and there is no food for the kids as the adults are unable to leave their homes out of fear for safety.”
Sara’s body was discovered after Sharif called 999 from Pakistan.
Medics have been unable to establish a cause of death, but Woking Coroner’s Court was told it was likely to be “unnatural”.
A previous post-mortem revealed she suffered “multiple and extensive injuries which are likely to have been caused over a sustained and extended period of time”.
How events have unfolded:
- August 17 – Sara Sharif’s body found with “multiple and extensive” injuries after her dad Urfan calls 999 from Pakistan
- August 19 – international manhunt launched as Surrey Police name Sara’s father, stepmother and uncle in connection with her death
- August 23 – uncle claims Sara “fell down the stairs and broke her neck” before family denies making statement
- August 29 – inquest hears that Sara’s death “likely to be unnatural”
- September 6 – Sara’s stepmother says family wants to “fight our case in court”
- September 7 – Pakistani cops raid 20 homes in Jhelum and Mirpur to draw out Sara’s relatives
- September 9 – cops detain ten close relatives of Sara to put pressure on Urfan
- September 11 – cops recover five children thought to have travelled to Pakistan with Urfan
- September 13 – Urfan and Sara’s uncle and stepmother arrested at Gatwick Airport after returning to the UK