Sara Sharif case: Father, stepmother convicted of brutal murder after UK trial

Published December 11, 2024
An undated handout photograph shows British-Pakistani girl Sara Sharif at school. — AFP
An undated handout photograph shows British-Pakistani girl Sara Sharif at school. — AFP
A combination of handout photographs made available by Surrey Police on December 11 shows (L-R) Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Faisal Malik, respectively father, stepmother and uncle of British-Pakistani girl Sara Sharif in custody. — AFP
A combination of handout photographs made available by Surrey Police on December 11 shows (L-R) Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Faisal Malik, respectively father, stepmother and uncle of British-Pakistani girl Sara Sharif in custody. — AFP

The father and stepmother of Sara Sharif, a 10-year-old girl who was found dead in her home in Britain, were on Wednesday convicted of her murder after a trial which heard harrowing details of her treatment before her killing.

Sara was found dead in August 2023 at her home in Woking, a town southwest of London, after what prosecutors say was a campaign of “serious and repeated violence”.

The family fled to Pakistan immediately after she was killed, before they were arrested in September 2023 at London’s Gatwick airport after flying from Dubai.

Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors at the start of the trial that Sara had suffered a litany of injuries, including burns, broken bones and bite marks.

Sara’s father Urfan Sharif, 43, and his wife Beinash Batool, 30, stood trial at London’s Old Bailey court charged with her murder, which they denied.

The jury convicted Urfan Sharif and Batool of Sara’s murder. Sara’s uncle Faisal Malik, 29, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of causing or allowing Sara’s death.

Urfan and Batool will be sentenced on December 17.

Emlyn Jones told jurors at the start of the trial that Urfan had called police and said: “It wasn’t my intention to kill her, but I beat her up too much.”

Urfan gave evidence and initially denied responsibility for Sara’s death. He accepted slapping Sara to discipline her but denied beating her in a regular or sustained way.

But, under questioning from Batool’s lawyer Caroline Carberry, he later said he took “full responsibility” for his daughter’s death.

Lawyers for Batool, who did not give evidence, said Urfan was violent and controlling and that she was scared of him.

Opinion

Editorial

Missing in action
17 Mar, 2026

Missing in action

NOT exactly known for playing a proactive role in protecting the interests of Muslim nations and populations...
Risk to stability
Updated 17 Mar, 2026

Risk to stability

THE risks to Pakistan’s fragile economic recovery from the US-Israel war on Iran cannot be dismissed. Yet the...
Enrolment push
17 Mar, 2026

Enrolment push

THE federal government has embarked upon the welcome initiative to enrol 25,000 out-of-school children in Islamabad...
Holding the line
16 Mar, 2026

Holding the line

PAKISTAN’S long battle against polio has recently produced encouraging signs. Data from the national eradication...
Power self-reliance
Updated 16 Mar, 2026

Power self-reliance

PAKISTAN’S transition to domestic sources of electricity is a welcome development for a country that has long been...
Looking for safety
16 Mar, 2026

Looking for safety

AS the Middle East conflict enters its third week, the war’s most enduring victims are not those who wage it....