Sara Sharif was punished because she had a ‘jinn in her’ – stepmother

Beinash Batool, 30, Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 42, and uncle Faisal Malik, 29, are accused of a campaign of abuse culminating in her murder.

Sara Sharif, whose body was found by police in her home (Surrey Police/PA) (PA Media)

Sara Sharif’s stepmother blamed the 10-year-old’s naughty behaviour for the beatings she received, even suggesting she had a “jinn in her”, a court has heard.

Beinash Batool, 30, Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 42, and uncle Faisal Malik, 29, are accused of carrying out a campaign of abuse culminating in her murder on August 8 last year.

Batool and Sharif have blamed each other for the violence in the family home in Woking, Surrey, with university student Malik claiming he was not involved.

On Thursday, jurors heard a series of WhatsApp messages between 2020 and 2023 in which Batool relayed to her sister Qandeela Saboohi beatings Sharif had allegedly carried out on Sara.

They were accompanied by pictures of a grim-faced and bruised Sara, with the message: “Look what he’s doing. Delete the pictures.”

Batool repeatedly complained to her sister that Sharif was hitting Sara for being “naughty” “rude and rebellious” and because she had cut up his clothes, hidden keys and torn up documents.

Ms Saboohi advised her to listen to the Koran, and when Batool talked about going to the police, told her to calm down.

As early as February 2020, Batool described Sharif as going on a “rampage” after spilling hot tea, saying he was “possessed”.

She described an “anger attack” after a visit to a play centre and incidents in which Sharif broke photo frames and curtains.

Commenting on 10 photographs of Sara, she wrote: “This is how bad he is beating her … I feel really sorry for her. He beat the crap out of her.”

Batool said that Sara had cut her father’s clothes for being mean and Sharif was “punishing her” by making her stay up all night doing “sit-ups”.

She told her sister: “She’s got a jinn in her. She reminds me of me when I was young.”

On another occasion, Batool said Sharif “went ballistic” and “beat Sara up like crazy”, expressing fears that he would break her arm or leg.

After Batool had gone to bed, she said Sharif was in the other room making Sara “put her hands up”.

In May 2021, Batool told Ms Saboohi: “Not great in our house, it’s all a bit manic. Urfan beat the crap out of Sara and my mind is all in bits. I really want to report him.

“Why the hell doesn’t Urfan learn – she’s covered in bruises, literally beaten black.”

Afterwards, Sharif sat “on his fat bum” and played the board game Ludo, she said.

She went on: “Why the hell I’m even letting him in the house. I’m sorry for Sara, poor girl cannot walk. She literally fainted in the kitchen in the morning. He made her do sit-ups all night.”

Asked what Sara had done, Batool said: “Because she hid the keys.”

By 2022, Batool said she was planning on taking “legal advice” but was advised by her sister to give it time and not rush.

Batool wrote that Sharif had woken Sara up to hit her because her “bad behaviour” got him “randomly” angry.

In February, she wrote that Sara was vomiting “randomly” and that she could not breathe.

Later that year, Batool said that she was considering taking Sara out of school, saying: “I don’t want to but kinda don’t have a choice.

“It’s not hard home schooling. I’m just fed up of her behaviour and Urfan’s.

“Sara’s body is literally bruised because Urfan beat her up. I cannot even cover it up.

“He beat Sara up yesterday and I can’t send her to school on Monday looking like that.

“She ripped Urfan’s documents in front of him and was being rude and rebellious.”

“She’s got way too much bruises and stuff and home schooling isn’t that hard.”

Referring to another image of Sara in a hijab, Batool wrote: “You haven’t even seen her body, it’s a whole lot worse.”

Days later, she relayed that Sara’s school was worried about her and Sharif was “stressed” about it.

In apparent reference to Sara’s injuries, she wrote: “Urfan told me to cover it up with makeup and she’s going to wear sunglasses.”

Two months before Sara died, Batool referred to “Sara’s antics”, telling her sister: “Urfan beat the crap out of Sara … Yeah, he beat her up like crazy.

“Her oxygen level dropped really low, she’s finding it hard to stay awake.”

Asked if Sharif had hit her on the head, Batool said: “Nah but she’s breathing really rapidly.”

On June 22 2023, Batool messaged: “Having a bad day with Sara. Just cleaned her up. She pood herself.”

The day before Sara died, Ms Saboohi tried to make contact but Batool told her she was “not in the mood to speak”.

Two days later, the defendants were captured on CCTV as they prepared to board a flight to Pakistan from Heathrow Airport.

Last August 10, police found Sara’s body in a bunkbed after Sharif called from Pakistan to say he had beaten Sara up “too much” for “being naughty”.

Jurors have heard she suffered dozens of injuries, including burns and suspected human bite marks.

Previously, prosecutor William Emlyn Jones KC told jurors that it was in dispute whether messages Batool sent two of her sisters were accurate or gave a full picture.

All three defendants, formerly of Hammond Road, Woking, have denied murder and causing or allowing the death of a child between December 16 2022 and August 9 2023.

The Old Bailey trial was adjourned until Friday.