Sara Sharif murder trial latest: Post-mortem evidence to be heard after court told of catalogue of abuse

Fingerprints allegedly belonging to 10-year-old’s father Urfan Sharif found on one of bags, second day of trial hears

Listen: Sara Sharif's father tells 999 operator he's killed daughter

Sara Sharif’s head was covered with “homemade hoods” made of plastic bags and parcel tape in the weeks before her death, a court has heard.

The Old Bailey also heard on Tuesday that fingerprints allegedly belonging to the 10-year-old’s father, Urfan Sharif, were found on one of the bags and a bit of parcel tape.

On Wednesday, jurors are expected to hear details of her post-mortem examination.

Earlier, the Old Bailey heard neighbour Chloe Redwin, who used to live above the family at a previous address in 2020, would hear “shockingly loud” sounds of “smacking” from their home followed by “gut-wrenching screams”, and thought Urfan Sharif was “conscious of the noise his family made, because on occasions he would apologise for it”.

Surrey Police discovered Sara dead in a bedroom at her home in Woking on 10 August last year.

The court heard on Monday that the child was found with “disturbing” injuries that included bitemarks, scalding and broken bones in what was described as a “campaign of abuse”.

Urfan Sharif, 42, is standing trial for her murder before Mr Justice Cavanagh alongside Sara’s stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, and her uncle Faisal Malik, 29.

Key Points

• Sara Sharif’s head covered with ‘home-made hoods’ of plastic bags and parcel tape, court told
• Pictured: Note found by Sara’s body saying ‘It’s me Urfan Sharif who killed my daughter’
• Police officer recalls finding Sara’s body under neatly placed white sheet

[14 October 2024 20:00 · Holly Evans]

Jury told Sara Sharif’s father told police ‘I legally punished her and she died’

The father of Sara Sharif fled to Pakistan after allegedly killing the 10-year-old and called police to say “I legally punished her and she died”, a court has heard.

Taxi driver Urfan Sharif, 42, is on trial at the Old Bailey accused of her murder alongside Sara’s stepmother, Beinash Batool, 30, and uncle, Faisal Malik, 29.

Opening their trial on Monday, prosecutor William Emlyn Jones KC said all the defendants had played a part in a “campaign of abuse” against Sara leading to her death.

Read the full article here:

[14 October 2024 18:00 · Holly Evans]

Recap: Key takeaways from today

Opening the prosecution case against Sara Sharif’s father, stepmother and uncle, jurors at the Old Bailey heard:

• Urfan Sharif called Surrey Police during the early hours of 10 August and told them: “I’ve killed my daughter. I legally punished her, and she died.” 
• Officers found the 10-year-old under a blanket in a bunkbed at the family home in Surrey, with a handwritten note next to the pillow in Sharif’s writing. The note said: “It’s me Urfan Sharif who killed my daughter by beating. I swear to God that my intention was not to kill her. But I lost it.
• A post-mortem examination found that Sara had died of extensive injuries after enduring a prolonged period of abuse, which included bruising, burns and broken bones. 
• The three family members fled to Pakistan on 9 August and were arrested over a month later on 13 September after returning to the UK.

[14 October 2024 17:00 · Holly Evans]

Sara Sharif timeline leading to arrest

[14 October 2024 16:12 · Holly Evans]

Trial adjourns for the day

The trial of Sara Sharif’s father, stepmother and uncle has been adjourned for the day and will resume on Tuesday at 10.30am.

[14 October 2024 15:50 · Holly Evans]

Defendants seeking to ‘deflect the blame’ onto one another

The prosecutor told the jury that all three defendants “played their part” in the violence and it was “inconceivable” that just one of them had acted alone.

Mr Emlyn Jones KC said: “Each of them denies that they were the one responsible for any of that violence and abuse.

“Each of them seeks to deflect the blame onto one or both of the others, to shift responsibility away from themselves, onto someone else.

“In other words, they are pointing the finger at each other.”

Jurors were told Sharif’s case was that his wife, Batool, was responsible for Sara’s death and his confession was false to protect her.

Batool accused Sharif of being a violent disciplinarian and she was fearful of her husband, while Malik’s case is that whoever was responsible it was not him and he was unaware of what was going on.

[14 October 2024 15:08 · Holly Evans]

Schoolgirl had suffered ‘disturbing’ bite marks

Sara Sharif was “beaten” with objects and had suffered from human bite marks on her lower left arm and inner thigh, the court heard.

An examination of the 10-year-old’s body also found a “pattern of injuries” and “signs of traumatic brain injury”, the prosecution said.

Regarding the leg injury, prosecutor William Emlyn Jones said it had “marks which indicated that the teeth had been dragged across the surface and with central bruising probably the result of suction.”

While Sharif and Malik had provided dental impressions for comparison which had ruled them out, Batool had refused to do so.

Other injuries included to Sara’s ribs, shoulder blades, fingers and 11 separate fractures to the spine, Mr Emlyn Jones said.

Sara had suffered a ‘campaign of abuse’ (Surrey Police/PA) (PA Media)

[14 October 2024 14:51 · Holly Evans]

Beinash Batool described Sara’s death as an ‘incident’

Following media interest in Sara’s death, Urfan Sharif and Beinash Batool appeared in a video clip which was shared and broadcast with Sky News.

In the short clip, Battol described her stepdaughter’s death as an “incident”.

She then went on to a “litany of complaints” about the conduct of the Pakistani police and their investigation.

She explains, at the end of the clip, that they have gone into hiding because they fear the police; but, she said, they were willing to comply with the UK authorities and to “fight our case in court”.

They were arrested a week later after boarding a flight to Gatwick on 13 September.