Dad and Stepmom Who Fled Country After 10-Year-Old Daughter's Abuse Death Convicted of Murder

Content warning: The following article contains disturbing descriptions of violence.

The father and stepmother of a 10-year-old girl who died last summer in the United Kingdom after being repeatedly abused were convicted of her murder, authorities said.

Urfan Sharif, 42, the father of Sara Sharif, was found guilty of murder alongside his wife, Beinash Batool, 30, after a 10-week trial at the Central Criminal Court in London, according to a press release shared by the Crown Prosecution Service on Wednesday, Dec. 11.

Urfan’s brother, Faisal Malik, 29, was acquitted of murder but found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child in connection with the case.

Sara was found dead at the family’s home in Woking, U.K., a town southwest of London, on Aug. 10, 2023, with multiple injuries including broken bones, burns, bruising and a traumatic head injury, authorities said.

"Many of the injuries that Sara suffered had been inflicted using implements, including a cricket bat, a vacuum, and a metal pole,” Surrey Police said in a statement.

“There was also evidence that Sara had been restrained and her head covered with homemade hoods made from parcel tape and plastic bags while some of the injuries were inflicted,” police added.

Medical examiners determined Sara died from “complications from multiple injuries and neglect” but could not give a “definitive cause of death,” according to prosecutors.

The grim discovery was made after Urfan called police that day and told them he had “legally punished” Sara and she had died, per the release. He then claimed he had beaten her but did not intend to kill her.

At the scene, police also found a note written by Urfan, saying he had killed her and had “lost it,” prosecutors said. However, police said he refused to say where he was and gave no indication that the family had flown to Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan, the night before Sara’s body was found.

Investigators said Batool had booked the one-way tickets for herself, Urfan and Malik, as well as Sara's five siblings on Aug. 8, 2023, the day that Sara is believed to have died.

The trio returned to the U.K. on Sept. 13, 2023, and were detained upon arrival from Pakistan.

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According to police, Urfan initially blamed Batool for Sara’s death, but changed his testimony during the trial, claiming “full responsibility” in a bid to protect his wife and brother. While he admitted to beating Sara, he said he was not responsible for the bites or burn injuries to his daughter, per police.

“In a small house with such a big family, it would have been immediately obvious to all the adults what was happening to Sara,” Libby Clark from the Crown Prosecution Service said in the release.

“Yet none of them took any action to stop it or report it. They all played their part in the violence that led to her tragic death,” she added.

Sara’s mother, Olga Sharif, remembered her daughter as someone whose "smile could brighten up the darkest room.”

“Everyone who knew Sara will know her unique character, her beautiful smile and loud laugh," Olga said in the police statement.

Urfan, Batool and Malik are all scheduled to be sentenced at the Central Criminal Court in London on Dec. 17.

Read the original article on People