Five weeks before she was murdered, 35-year-old Zara Aleena started work at the Royal Courts of Justice. On her first day, she sent a brightly smiling selfie to her friends and family, saying she couldn’t believe she was actually there. It was an administrative role that took her one step closer to her lifelong dream of being a lawyer; something she had pursued doggedly even as her studies were interrupted by caring responsibilities and financial concerns. After passing the solicitors’ exams with distinction and landing this new job, Aleena felt a new stage of her life was beginning. Her aunt Farah Naz told her: “Soon, Zara, you are going to be a formidable force.”
On the evening of 26 June 2022, Aleena met a friend at a local pub, the Great Spoon of Ilford. They had dinner and a drink there before moving on to a bar, where Aleena drank water. Around 2am, they left. The friend got in a cab, but Aleena walked; she was close to home and it was a warm evening. When her other aunt, Smaira Naz, imagines her walking that night, she thinks of how Aleena always had a spring in her step. “She had this bounce when she walked – it was lovely, so much energy,” she says. “Walking made her feel free.”
