Sara Sharif’s father has told jurors he lied to them in a bid to blame his wife for his daughter’s death.
Under questioning at the Old Bailey, Urfan Sharif said accusations he had made against Beinash Batool of tying up and beating his daughter were not true.
Asked if he had lied and tried to implicate someone else, the taxi driver replied: “Yes.”
On Wednesday, he told jurors he “takes full responsibility” for killing the 10-year-old after brutally beating her, as he stands trial for her murder.
He confessed to hitting the schoolgirl with a cricket bat as she was bound with packaging tape as well as to repeatedly throttling her with his bare hand – and to hitting her with a metal pole as she lay dying.
He continues to deny her murder, telling the court: “She died because of me. I didn’t want to kill her.”
During the early hours of 10 August last year, Sharif had called Surrey Police after fleeing to Pakistan to say he had beaten his daughter “too much” for being “naughty” and that she had died.
Sharif, Batool, and Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, all formerly of Hammond Road, Woking, Surrey, deny murder and causing or allowing the 10-year-old’s death and the trial continues.
Key Points
- Father admits trying to ‘blame’ his wife for daughter’s death
- Urfan Sharif admits lying during cross-examination
- Sara Sharif’s father confesses to beating schoolgirl but denies her murder
- Sharif admits tying his daughter with tape before beating her
Father says he was ‘mean’ towards his daughter
15:31 , Holly EvansRepeating his statement from yesterday, Sharif admitted: “She died because of me because I hit her.”
While being questioned by the prosecution, the 42-year-old backtracked on his admission yesterday that he had hit her repeatedly with a cricket bat, and said it had only occurred once.
However, he said he had hit her a “few times” on this occasions, and had previously beaten her with a metal pole.
“I have been nasty, I had been mean with my daughter,” he said.
Sharif says he has been ‘selfish’ blaming Batool for Sara’s death
15:08 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif has admitted that he was the “bad one” in the family, and claimed that Beinash Batool had attempted to stop him “many times”.
When asked about his dramatic change in position on Wednesday, which saw him take “full responsibility” for what had happened to Sara, Sharif responded: “I’ve been selfish blaming other people for something they didn’t do.”
In a tense exchange, Mr Emlyn-Jones said: “You started off trying to save yourself, you literally tried to get away with murder didn’t you?”
He responded: “The death of Sara yes.”
“It’s important for you to emphasise the death of Sara, you don’t like the word murder do you? You are still trying to get away with murder, aren’t you?” Mr Emlyn-Jones said.
“Because I didn’t want to kill her, I did not want to harm her,” Sharif responded.
Taxi driver admits parenting of Sara was ‘very bad'
14:53 , Holly EvansOpening his questioning, Mr Emlyn-Jones KC began with a series of questioning about Sharif’s method of “disciplining” his children.
“You accept your parenting of Sara was impatient?” he said. “I don’t have the words to describe it,” he said.
“Unkind?,” he asked. “Yes sir.”
“Was it cruel?”, to which he agreed again.
“And it was violent?,” the prosecutor asked to which the taxi driver responded: “I’m not sure about that.”
“You’re not accepting your parenting of Sara was violent?” he was asked.
He subsequently responded his treatment of his daughter “was very bad”.
Prosecution begins to examine Sara’s father
14:40 , Holly EvansProsecutor William Emlyn-Jones KC has begun to question Sara Sharif’s father.
In his final stage of cross-examination by his brother’s lawyer Michael Ivers KC, he insisted he had returned back to the UK in September 2023 for his daughter.
He agreed that he had not carried out his abuse in front of his brother, nor had they informed his parents in Pakistan of Sara’s abuse, as this would have “gone down like a lead balloon”.
‘I take responsibility for it,’ says Sharif
14:23 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif has once again admitted responsibility for Sara Sharif’s death, after giving conflicting versions of events on both Wednesday and Thursday.
Under cross examination, he said that he had been aware of Sara’s injuries and the full extent of them once he was arrested and interviewed by the police.
Trial adjourns for lunch
13:15 , Holly EvansThe trial has adjourned for the lunch break and will resume at 2pm.
Sharif claims to have used cricket bat only once
13:11 , Holly EvansGiving a contrasting version from Wednesday’s admissions, Sharif maintained he had only used the cricket bat once on his daughter and had not hit her on the head.
When repeatedly asked to explain how Sara had died, Sharif responded: “I can’t explain.”
Speaking of his family’s reaction in Pakistan, Mr Ivers KC said: “It will have come as a body blow to all of them when they read it yesterday because you’ve lied to everyone haven’t you?”
Sharif nods and confirms.
“You’re busy pointing the blame at everyone else but yourself, is that fair?”, to which Sharif said: “Yes sir.”
He also claimed that on the day of her death, he had seen Sara sitting watching TV while eating snacks, and denied that he had been forced to return from Pakistan due to “pressure” placed upon his family.
Faisal Malik had spent increasing time away due to family’s cramped living conditions
12:24 , Holly EvansSpeaking of his brother’s presence in the household, Sharif confirmed that Faisal Malik spent large portions of his spare time out of the cramped flat in West Byfleet.
Neighbours had previously given evidence that they heard “screaming and crying” as well as the rattling of doors while the family were living at the small maisonette.
As a result of Malik moving to the UK to study in Portsmouth in December 2022 and staying with his older brother, Batool was required to “cover up” while Malik had to maintain his distance.
The court heard that Malik had then moved with the couple in April 2023 to their council home in Woking, but had to remain “cautious” given that he legally should not have been residing at the property.
Sharif insists repeated accusations of domestic abuse were a ‘coincidence'
11:49 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif has repeatedly denied being the “common denominator” after being accused by multiple former partners of domestic violence.
Three of his previous girlfriends, who were all Polish, had accused him of controlling behaviour, which included locking them inside and taking their passports.
He insisted that it was a “coincidence” and denied choosing his partners due to their vulnerability and his ability to control them.
Jurors also heard that Sharif had been raised in Pakistan and that his parents had not instilled a disciplinarian regime towards their children. He admitted that his ideas of discipline, which he used against Sara, had “come from him”.
“Did you have an idea about how children should be punished? Is that the truth about all of this?”, Mr Ivers KC asked.
“There’s certain things I can’t explain, I have no words,” Sharif said.
Father admits trying to ‘blame’ his wife for daughter’s death
11:34 , Holly EvansUnder questioning, Sharif admitted that he had lied in order to “blame” Beinash Batool for Sara’s death, and had accused her of tying up and beating his daughter.
Given the nature of Sara’s injuries, Sharif admitted he had never broken a bone and had not experienced its pain.
“I don’t want to upset people but she must have screamed and cried and heavens know what and you did those,” Mr Ivers KC said. “Yes sir,” he responded.
“And for a whole week you tried to blame someone else for what you did?”. He replied: “Yes sir.”
“It’s not just you lied, you lied and then tried to implicate someone else,” Mr Ivers said, to which he again confirmed: “Yes sir.”
Urfan Sharif admits lying during cross-examination
11:24 , Holly EvansReturning to the witness stand, Sharif responded “I was wrong” when asked why he had not told the truth during his earlier evidence by Malik’s lawyer Michael Ivers KC.
When asked “Wrong in what sense? Tell us some of the things that were wrong?”, he responded: “Everything was wrong.”
However, he insisted that his tearful response to questioning had been “real” and that his “pain” over his daughter’s death was genuine.
In a heated interaction, Mr Ivers KC said: “Your actions weren’t you mourning the loss of your daughter, it’s you seeking to persuade these 12 people of a pack of lies, isn’t it?
He responded: “I did lie. You can’t imagine my pain, I’m a bad dad, I’m a very bad dad but I’m still a father.”
Trial resumes
11:06 , Holly EvansThe trial of Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Faisal Malik for the murder of Sara Sharif has resumed.
We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates from court.
What can we expect today?
10:54 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif is set to take to the stand once again for cross-examination, with his brother Faisal Malik’s lawyer set to continue questioning.
William Emlyn-Jones KC, the prosecutor, is then set to re-examine Sharif following his dramatic admissions on Wednesday.
While denying murdering his 10-year-old daughter, the taxi driver admitted:
- Using brown packing tape to bind his daughter before beating her with a pole or a cricket bat
- Repeatedly hitting her over the head with a mobile phone and tightening his hands around her neck on more than one occasion
- He accepted that he had repeatedly injured his daughter, but denied that he had killed her, saying he “wasn’t thinking”
- Sharif denied using his Marks and Spencer belt to throttle her, and denied burning her buttocks and biting her arm
Full story: Sara Sharif’s father ‘takes full responsibility’ for her death in dramatic courtroom admission
10:39 , Holly EvansSara Sharif’s father has told jurors he “takes full responsibility” for the death of his 10-year-old daughter.
In a dramatic appearance at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, the taxi driver said “I accept every single thing” while his wife, Beinash Batool, sobbed in the dock.
During the early hours of 10 August last year, Mr Sharif had called Surrey Police after fleeing to Pakistan to say he had beaten his daughter “too much” for being “naughty”, and that she had died.
Read the full story here:
Sara Sharif’s father ‘takes full responsibility’ for her death in dramatic admission
Watch: Police bodycam footage from night Sara Sharif’s body was discovered
10:08 , Holly EvansSara Sharif’s stepmother was victim of ‘honour-based abuse’, court told
09:40 , Holly EvansSara Sharif’s father was attracted to her stepmother because she was a vulnerable young victim of “honour-based abuse”, a court has heard.
Taxi driver Urfan Sharif, 42, is on trial for Sara’s murder, along with his wife Beinash Batool, 30, and brother Faisal Malik, 29.
On Tuesday, Batool’s lawyer rejected Sharif’s claim that she was violent towards Sara, saying he was the one who was controlling, abusive and manipulative.
Read the full article here:
Sara Sharif’s stepmother was victim of ‘honour-based abuse’, court told
Sharif tells jurors: ‘I didn’t want to kill her’
09:20 , Holly EvansAfter his dramatic admission on Wednesday, Sharif asked for the murder charge against him to be put to him again but after a lunchbreak appeared to change his mind and insisted he was not guilty.
He told jurors: “I did not want to hurt her. I didn’t want to harm her.”
Ms Carberry responded: “But you did harm her. What did you intend when you took a cricket bat to a 10-year-old girl?”
The defendant said: “I did wrong. I didn’t think anything.”
Ms Carberry asked: “Do you accept that you killed her?”
Sharif said: “She died because of me. I didn’t want to kill her.”
In pictures: The family home where Sara Sharif was killed
09:01 , Holly Evans
Recap: What happened to Sara Sharif?
08:51 , Holly EvansSara was found dead in a bunkbed at the family home in Woking, Surrey, last August 10, the day after her father, stepmother and uncle fled to Pakistan.
Urfan Sharif had phoned police on arrival at Islamabad and admitted he had beaten Sara “too much”, having left a written confession on a pillow beside her body.
A post-mortem examination found she had suffered dozens of injuries including at least 25 broken bones, human bite marks, and burns on her bottom and feet.
The defendants were arrested on a plane at Gatwick Airport when they returned to the UK last September 13.
Watch: Video captures moment Sara Sharif’s family detained by police on plane
08:33 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif admits to brutally beating daughter – even whacking her with metal pole as she lay dying
08:00 , Tara CobhamSara Sharif’s father has admitted to brutally beating the 10-year-old – and even whacking her with a metal pole as she lay dying.
As the schoolgirl lay collapsed and dying in her stepmother Beinash Batool’s lap last 8 August, Urfan Sharif continued the years-long campaign of abuse, jurors were told.
That day, Sharif admitted he armed himself with a pole after being called home by Batool.
Defence barrister Caroline Carberry KC, for Batool, said: “When you went into the room it was clear Sara needed medical help.
“You said to Beinash that Sara was just pretending that she was just acting up. And you took the metal pole that you had taken upstairs and you gave her a couple of whacks with it on her abdomen, while she was lying there very unwell.”
Sharif agreed and wept in the witness box.
Sharif admits tying his daughter with tape before beating her
07:46 , Holly EvansUrfan Sharif occasionally bound his daughter with tape before beating her with a pole or cricket bat in the weeks leading up to her death in August 2023, the Old Bailey heard.
It was put to him that he bound Sara with tape, and he responded “yes ma’am”.
Asked if he had used the brown packing tape that had been ordered from the family’s Amazon account that July, he said “yes ma’am”.
Caroline Carberry KC, for Beinash Batool, asked Sharif if he had forced Sara to do squats while her ankles and wrists were bound with tape, to which he said “no ma’am. No ma’am, that’s not right”.
Sharif later added “I did beat her with a pole, but no sit-ups and squats”.
He denied binding Sara in order to stop her from running away or try to defend herself.
Sara Sharif’s father confesses to killing schoolgirl – but continues to deny her murder
07:00 , Tara CobhamSara Sharif’s father has confessed to killing the 10-year-old but insisted he did not mean to “harm” her as he continues to deny her murder.
Taxi driver Urfan Sharif, 42, had sought to blame Sara’s stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, for a catalogue of injuries, claiming he was out at work when his daughter was being abused.
On the seventh day of his evidence at the Old Bailey, he told jurors he took “full responsibility” for what happened but did not intend to hurt his daughter.
He went on to admit hitting Sara with a cricket bat as she was bound with packaging tape.
He repeatedly throttled her with his bare hands, breaking the hyoid bone in her neck, and battered her over the head with a mobile phone, he said.
He denied burning her buttocks with an iron, biting her arm or tightening a belt around her neck, the Old Bailey heard.
