The British-Pakistani father of 10-year-old Sarah Sharif denied killing her in court on Thursday and instead blamed her stepmother, describing her as “evil” and a “psycho”.
Sarah Sharif was found dead in her bed in Woking, southwest London, on August 10, 2023, with more than 71 external injuries, including broken bones, burns and bite marks.
The victim’s father, Urfan Sharif, 42, had traveled to Pakistan with her husband, Benash Batool, 30, and Faisal Malik, 29, the child’s uncle, a day before the search.
Soon after arriving in Islamabad, Sharif contacted British authorities and tearfully said, “I have killed my daughter” and admitted that he had “beat her up a lot”. However, during the court proceedings, Sharif later retracted his confession and claimed to have “saved his family”.
At London’s Old Bailey court, where all three pleaded not guilty to murder and the child’s death, Batool testified about incidents of serious abuse by Sharif.
In his third day of testimony, Sharif admitted slapping Sarah “several times” but denied beating, burning or biting her, saying he was “never at home” at the time of her injuries.
‘biting her like an animal’
Sharif became emotional when his lawyer Naeem Mian discussed the incident of hitting Sara with a cricket bat during interrogation.
The taxi driver denied claims that he burned his daughter with an iron, forcing Batool to slap Sara, as he accused the home-schooled child of regularly abusing him.
Pointing to Batool in the dock, Sharif said: “I shouldn’t have believed him… I didn’t know I was living with an evil and psychotic”.
He accused Batool of biting him “like an animal”.
The court had earlier heard that Sharif and Malik had given dental impressions but Batool had refused to do so.
“I didn’t. Faisal didn’t. Who else was in the house?” Sharif said, AFP reported.
‘His arm was twisted’
He denied any knowledge that Sarah had suffered. “She never told me that,” he said, adding that Sarah’s injuries were hidden beneath full-sleeve tops, long bottoms and hijab head coverings.
Her lawyer, Mian, revealed that in the months leading up to Sarah’s death, Sharif worked long hours, leaving early and returning late, while maintaining regular telephone contact with Batool, who usually stayed at home.
Sharif broke down in tears when he returned home to find Sarah’s hands bound with brown packaging tape, crediting Batool with the act.
He told the jury: ‘Her hands were tied behind her back with parcel tape. Sara was scared.’
Through tears, he said: ‘Benash said, “She was being naughty, so I tied her hands so she wouldn’t hurt anyone else,” the Daily Mail reported.
When questioned about police involvement or his inaction in removing Batool, Sharif said his wife had been “manipulated” and he accepted her apology.
“I’ve been a fool,” he concluded.
DNA analysis revealed…
The court examined forensic evidence, including bundles of packaging tape and a white plastic carrier bag in the shape of a hood that was possibly used on Sarah’s head.
DNA analysis showed long brown hair matching Sarah’s profile on the bag, which also had packaging tape attached to it, according to court testimony.
The court heard that Sharif’s fingerprints were found on both the bag and the side of the tape, not the tape. However, he denied the claim that he made or used a hood from a plastic bag on Sara.
Sharif explained the presence of his fingerprints by stating that he had handled these items during household waste disposal.
‘Father it’s not me’
Before her death, Sara, who worked as a domestic worker, asked Sharif to stay at home instead of going to work.
She testified to the jury, Sarah told me, “Dad, it’s not me. Whatever’s going on in the house, that’s Benash.”
Earlier, Sharif had claimed that Batool was hostile towards him and prevented Sarah from questioning him about the source of her injuries.
A message from Batoul to his sister in 2022 revealed Sharif’s suggestion to cover up Sarah’s wound with cosmetics, prompting his sister to respond: “As far as we can tell it was going to happen.”