‘Dictatorial’ father of Sara Sharif said daughter ‘brings smile to my face’

Urfan Sharif was convicted of the 10-year-old’s murder on Wednesday.

Sara Sharif was murdered by her father (Surrey Police/PA) (PA Media)

Urfan Sharif told social workers that his daughter Sara “brings a smile to my face” before he went on to murder her, new documents show.

Sharif, who was convicted of Sara’s murder on Wednesday, also described her as “one of the best kids” when visited by social workers in February 2015.

But staff at Surrey County Council had previously recorded that they did not “trust” Sharif, and described his parenting style as “quite dictatorial”.

Sharif was found guilty of murdering his daughter in August last year along with her stepmother, Beinash Batool. Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, was convicted of causing or allowing her death following a trial at the Old Bailey.

Documents previously released to the media from three separate sets of family court proceedings – which were allowed to be published following the verdicts – showed that concerns were raised by Surrey County Council about Sara’s care within a week of her birth in 2013, with Sharif and Sara’s mother, Olga, known to social services as early as 2010.

But new documents, released on Thursday, show that in 2014, a social worker said engagements with the parents “causes the local authority not to trust” Sharif.

The same year, the council applied for Sara to be taken into emergency care, telling a family court it had “significant concerns” about the children returning to Sharif, “given the history of allegations of physical abuse of the children and domestic abuse with Mr Sharif as the perpetrator”.

As part of that application, the council told the court that in 2013, Sharif was assessed as having “repeatedly overlooked” the needs of Sara and her siblings, and said “there is no evidence to suggest that this assessment of Mr Sharif would be any different now”.

The report added that “there is evidence to suggest Mr Sharif poses a risk” to Sara, and that she was at “immediate risk of harm”.

As part of the same set of proceedings, a report by a social worker said: “Mr Sharif described Sara as ‘one of the best kids, she is very good and brings a smile to my face. She gives hugs and kisses, she plays with you, she understands what you say to her and knows what she needs when going out. She has very good hygiene and is not a messy eater.”

But the social worker recorded that Sharif demonstrated “some emotional warmth” to Sara, but said “it can be inconsistent”, and also recorded that Sharif stated that Sara had “‘no option’ but to listen to him, which comes across as quite dictatorial”.

Despite the council’s concerns, Sara remained in contact with her father, and later moved to his home in Woking in 2019.

Having previously said in 2015 that there is “no violence in our home”, Sharif later admitted to jurors at his trial that he hit Sara with a cricket bat as she was bound with packaging tape, repeatedly throttled her with his bare hands, and battered her over the head with a mobile phone, in a campaign of abuse.

He will be sentenced alongside Batool and Malik on Tuesday.

Following the guilty verdicts, Rachael Wardell, executive director for children, families and lifelong learning at Surrey County Council, said: “Sara’s death is incredibly distressing and we share in the profound horror at the terrible details that have emerged during the trial.

“We cannot begin to comprehend the suffering that poor Sara endured at the hands of members of her family who should have loved, protected, and cared for her.

“The focus of the trial has been on the evidence needed to secure the convictions of those responsible for Sara’s death. This means that until the independent safeguarding review concludes, a complete picture cannot be understood or commented upon.

“What is clear from the evidence we’ve heard in court is that the perpetrators went to extreme lengths to conceal the truth from everyone.

“We are resolute in our commitment to protecting children, and we are determined to play a full and active part in the forthcoming review alongside partner agencies, to thoroughly understand the wider circumstances surrounding Sara’s tragic death.”