Sara Sharifs father and stepmother jailed for life for torture and murder

Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother have been jailed for life for years of horrific “torture” and “despicable” abuse culminating in her murder.

The 10-year-old suffered “unimaginable pain, misery and anxiety” as she was repeatedly beaten, burned, bitten and restrained at the family home in Woking, Surrey, the court heard.

Urfan Sharif, 42, and Beinash Batool, 30, had tried to cover up the abuse, twice taking her out of school, and then fled to Pakistan after she died, prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones KC said.

On Tuesday, the couple were jailed for life for her murder, with Sharif handed a minimum term of 40 years and Batool given 33 years.

Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, who was found guilty of causing or allowing her death, was jailed for 16 years.

There were cries of “yes” from the public gallery but the defendants made no reaction and stood with heads bowed in the dock as they were sentenced.

In a televised sentencing at the Old Bailey, Mr Justice Cavanagh said Sara’s death “was the culmination of years of neglect, frequent assaults and what can only be described as torture”, mainly at the hands of Sharif.

The senior judge said her “despicable treatment” took place in “plain sight and in front of the rest of the family”.

He told Sharif: “You treated her in such a way because you considered it your right to impose harsh discipline on her.

“Sara was a brave, feisty and spirited child. She was not submissive as you wanted her to be. She stood up to you.

“I have no doubt that your ego and sense of self importance was boosted by the power you wielded over her and the rest of the family.”

Batool was prepared to “sacrifice” her stepdaughter, the judge said: “Put bluntly, you did not care about Sara enough to save her.”

He dismissed as “preposterous” any suggestion that Malik was too busy on his phone and wearing earbuds to notice what was going on.

Mr Justice Cavanagh said the case “starkly demonstrated” the dangers of vulnerable children like Sara being home schooled and had raised concern over whether anything could have been done to prevent the tragedy.

Earlier, Sara’s mother Olga Sharif, who attended court by video link, said Sara was “always smiling” and her “own unique character”.

In a victim impact statement, she said: “She is now an angel who looks down on us from heaven, she is no longer experiencing violence.

“To this day, I can’t understand how someone can be such a sadist to a child.

Addressing the defendants in the dock, she said: “You are sadists although even this word is not enough for you. I would say you are executioners.”

Libby Clark, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Sara Sharif was a lively and joyful 10-year-old girl whose life was tragically cut short by the very people who should have protected and cared for her.

“Today’s sentences reflect the cruelty and gravity of their crimes, and while no sentence can bring Sara back, we hope this outcome is able to provide some small comfort to all those that knew and loved her.”

Sara was found dead in a bunkbed at her home in Woking, Surrey, after her father rang police from Pakistan to confess he had beaten her “too much”.

She had suffered 71 “fresh” injuries including 25 broken bones, iron burns on her bottom, scalding marks to her feet, and human bites.

Sharif had hit her with a cricket bat and iron bar, throttled her, and thrown a mobile phone at her head, jurors had heard.

Sara was also tied up with packaging tape and her head covered with a makeshift hood during regular bouts of violence that would have left her in excruciating pain, jurors had heard.

Even as she lay dying in Batool’s lap last August 8, taxi driver Sharif had come home and whacked her in the stomach for “pretending”.

Batool had told her sister that Sharif would “beat the crap” out of his daughter but failed to do anything to stop it, even calling him home from work to dish out punishments, the court was told.

The abuse began soon after Sara went to live with her father and stepmother in 2019 and she was treated like a “skivvy” and “as if she was worthless”, Mr Justice Cavanagh said.

He told the court: “This poor child was battered with great force again and again.”

The violence became so “normalised” that university student Malik failed to act after moving in with the family in December 2022.

By January 2023, Sara began wearing a hijab at school to cover up the bruises.

Teachers had twice noticed marks on her face, and referred her to social services last March, but the case was dropped within days and the following month Sara was taken out of school.

Within hours of Sara’s death, Sharif and Batool had booked flights to Pakistan for the whole family, including her five siblings and half siblings.

The defendants returned to the UK on September 13 2023, leaving the children behind, and were detained within minutes of a flight touching down at Gatwick airport.

In his trial, Sharif initially blamed Batool for the violence before dramatically accepting “full responsibility”, leaving jurors open mouthed and tearful.

He later appeared to backtrack, denying he had bitten or burned Sara or covered her head in a hood.

Jurors heard that bite marks on Sara’s arm and thigh did not match either Sharif or Malik, and only Batool had refused to give impressions of her teeth.

Sharif had been granted custody in 2019, despite earlier allegations of child abuse and arrests for alleged controlling behaviour towards ex-girlfriends.

Sara’s siblings and half-siblings remain in the city of Jhelum, with their paternal grandfather. Efforts to return them to the UK are still ongoing.

Published: 17/12/2024 by Radio NewsHub