‘She fell down stairs and broke her neck,’ Sara Sharif’s uncle tells Pakistan police
It is understood that the death of Sara Sharif 'is not likely to have been caused by one single catastrophic event' - Surrey PoliceThe uncle of murdered 10-year-old Sara Sharif has reportedly told police in Pakistan she fell down the stairs and broke her neck.Sara was found dead alone in her family home in Woking and had suffered “multiple and extensive” injuries, over a “sustained and extended period of time” a post-mortem had found.Her father, Urfan Sharif, 41, his partner Beinash Batool, 29, and Mr Sharif’s brother, Faisal Malik, 28, and five children flew out to Pakistan on one-way tickets from the UK the day before Sara’s body was discovered.The murder investigation has sparked an international manhunt for the three adults who are in hiding and wanted by Surrey Police for questioning.Detectives in Pakistan have raided a large number of addresses in the city of Jhelum in the search for the family, the Telegraph understands.A small number of “close family members” are currently bein
The uncle of murdered 10-year-old Sara Sharif has reportedly told police in Pakistan she fell down the stairs and broke her neck.
Sara was found dead alone in her family home in Woking and had suffered “multiple and extensive” injuries, over a “sustained and extended period of time” a post-mortem had found.
Her father, Urfan Sharif, 41, his partner Beinash Batool, 29, and Mr Sharif’s brother, Faisal Malik, 28, and five children flew out to Pakistan on one-way tickets from the UK the day before Sara’s body was discovered.
The murder investigation has sparked an international manhunt for the three adults who are in hiding and wanted by Surrey Police for questioning.
Detectives in Pakistan have raided a large number of addresses in the city of Jhelum in the search for the family, the Telegraph understands.
A small number of “close family members” are currently being interrogated to find the trio’s whereabouts. However, their location remains unknown.
A police source said: “We have raided many places in the whole district to find the father of the slain child. We have approached the elders of that area too. We have questioned many including some close family members. There is no clue yet.”
Imran Sharif, an uncle of Sarah’s living in Pakistan, is among those believed to have been questioned.
Mr Sharif allegedly told police that his niece “fell down the stairs and broke her neck,” according to Sky News. However, the Telegraph has not been able to independently verify this claim.
Mr Sharif reportedly said: “Beinash was home with the children. Sara fell down the stairs and broke her neck. Beinash panicked and phoned Urfan. I found out what happened to Sara through the international media.
“My parents told me Urfan briefly came home very upset. He kept saying ‘they’ [the British authorities] are going to take his children away from him.”
The claims of a family accident appear to contradict findings from a post-mortem examination carried out by Surrey Police which found the schoolgirl suffered “multiple and extensive injuries” over a “sustained and extended period of time”.
Ms Batool’s family home in Mirpur is believed to have been searched, but the family of eight was nowhere to be seen.
No formal extradition treaty
Olga Sharif, Sar’s mother, dismissed claims her daughter died from a broken neck and suggested it was a lie to protect her husband’s alleged complicity.
She told the Sun newspaper: “I don’t want to hear from his brother. I’ve never met that brother, even when I was in Pakistan. I don’t know him.
“He could have just made that claim to protect his brother and try to stop questions being asked. I don’t think he is being honest.
“If he believes that is what happened then he could have been lied to by Urfan to try and win his family over.
There is no formal extradition treaty between Pakistan and the UK.
It has since emerged that officers found Sara’s body shortly after her father made a 999 call from Islamabad on Aug 10.
Detective Superintendent Mark Chapman, describing the investigation as “traumatic”, said “the cause of death is still to be established”.
“We have identified three people we would like to speak to as part of our enquiries. They are known to the victim. We are not looking to identify anyone else”.
Sara was being educated at home
It is understood that her death “is not likely to have been caused by one single catastrophic event”.
The Telegraph understands that the family were known to police on a “limited and historic basis”.
Surrey County Council have also said Sara was previously known to authorities. A neighbour told the BBC on Wednesday that Sara had been removed from school and was being educated at home.
A spokesman for the National Crime Agency (NCA) said: “The NCA is supporting Surrey Police with their investigations into the murder of a 10 year old girl.
“This involves specialist officers from our Joint International Crime Centre and across our international network providing operational support, advice and guidance as required.”
Surrey Police have been approached for comment.
A previous statement from the force read: “Our enquiries remain ongoing to locate them and we are continuing to work with international agencies, including Interpol, the National Crime Agency and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to progress our enquiries with the Pakistani authorities”
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