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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
National
Emma McMenamy

Family of murdered mum Seema Banu and two children hit out after body of triple killer flown home to India for burial

The body of twisted triple killer Sameer Syed has been flown back to India so his family in Bangalore can bury him there.

The repatriation move comes despite the fact he insisted his wife and two kids were buried in Ireland against their family’s wishes.

An official at the Embassy of India confirmed the 38-year-old’s body was sent back to Bangalore after his relatives asked for consular assistance.

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Syed killed himself in his prison cell days before he was due to go on trial for the murders of his wife Seema Banu and her daughter Asfira, 11, and six-year-old son Faizan in October 2020.

Seema’s heartbroken nephew Kashief Ahmed said her family had been dealt yet another blow on hearing that her killer would get a family funeral.

And he revealed they were trying desperately to get over to Ireland to visit her and her kids’ graves for the first time,

He told Irish Sunday Mirror: “We haven’t been to her resting place yet but with the support of the Irish police department we might visit her and the children.

“We feel helpless and we can’t get justice too as he took the easy way out.

“We have heard he was brought back to India, Tamilnadu.”

In the days after the murders Seema’s family hoped the bodies would be repatriated to India, but as next of kin Syed wanted them buried in Ireland.

They were buried in Newcastle cemetery, the only Muslim cemetery in Dublin, with the twisted killer crying crocodile tears at the graveside.

Kasheif said: “We were helpless at the time as he was next of kin.

“We were helpless and before he could get caught the funeral had already taken place.

“And now we can’t get them back because in our religion after burial repatriation is not allowed.”

Kashief said he has nothing but fond memories of his aunt who he said always looked out for others.

He continued: “She was a happy person, she brought smiles to everyone’s face and she used to guide everyone. We miss her a lot.”

Tragic Seema, 37, and her children were strangled to death at a house in Llewellyn Court, Rathfarnham, South Dublin.

Brute Syed had carried out a campaign of terror against his wife as she planned to flee to India.

She suffered physical and mental torture at the hands of her controlling husband who tried to strangle her twice before he killed the entire family.

Kashief said: “My aunt has said many times how he used to torture her... I can’t describe it [the torture].

“But we don’t know the reason behind why he killed them.”

Assistant Consular Officer at the Embassy of India, Sameer Rawat, confirmed that Syed’s body had been repatriated back to his home country.

He said: “Mortal remains of Mr Sameer Syed have been repatriated to India.” It is understood the body was flown back to India without being first blessed and washed.

Officials at the Islamic Foundation of Ireland said they were not contacted to prepare the body which is normally custom in their religion.

IFI administration officer Fazel Ryklief said: “No one approached us.

“Normally they would be in touch to ask us if we would like to wash the body and say a prayer but nothing has happened.

“I think the Indian Embassy kept it under wraps and sent the body back without us knowing.

“I was only wondering last week what had happened.”

The Irish Prison Service refused to comment on the investigation into Syed’s death at the Midlands Prison.

A spokesman said: “The Irish Prison Service does not comment on individual prisoner cases.

“All deaths in custody are investigated by the Irish Prison Service, the Inspector of Prisons and An Garda Siochana, where circumstances warrant. The cause of death is determined by the Coroner office.”

His trial was expected to hear details of how he dressed up as a woman by wearing a hijab in order to evade CCTV as he meticulously planned the murders of his family.

It would also emerge that he had been careful not to bring his mobile phone with him on the day of the murders, leaving it in an apartment where he had living in Rathmines.

But the monster made a rookie mistake by bringing along a burner phone which gardai were able to use to pin him to the murder scene.

Meanwhile, the conniving killer had also desperately tried to pin the whole horrific crime on his wife, who he had murdered.

Believing he could potentially get away with it, the killer staged the scene to look like a murder-suicide.

Following his death, Brendan Grehan SC for the DPP asked Justice Paul McDermott at the Central Criminal Court to close the court file on Syed.

It formally ended the criminal proceedings, which were expected to take five weeks, against Syed.

Mr Justice McDermott said it was a “very tragic case” involving the death of a mother and her two children and expressed his sympathy to the family.

Superintendent Gordan Woulfe said the thoughts of the investigation team, based at Dundrum Garda Station, were very much with Seema and her two children.

He added: “They were always at the forefront of our thoughts as we pursued this investigation.

“We are also very mindful of her family in India and our thoughts are with them as well.”

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