In a London court on Monday, a prosecutor detailed the tragic case of a 10-year-old British-Pakistani girl whose body was found with burn marks believed to have been inflicted with an iron.
Sara Sharif was discovered deceased in her bed at her family home in Woking, southern England, on August 10, 2023. The prosecutor highlighted that Sara’s stepmother, Batool, has refused to provide a dental impression for comparison with bite marks found on the body.
He further reported that Sara sustained additional injuries, including damage to her ribs, shoulder blades, and fingers and 11 separate fractures to the spine.
The court heard a recording of a phone call from the evening of August 8, 2023, in which Batool calmly inquired about booking flights to Islamabad.
Sara’s body was found in the vacant family home following an emergency call made by a man claiming to be her father, apparently from Pakistan.
Next to Sara’s body, a note believed to be a confession from her father was discovered. It read, “Love you, Sara.” A second page of the note stated, “Whoever sees this note, it’s me, Urfan Sharif, who killed my daughter by beating. I am running away because I am scared, but I promise to surrender myself and take punishment.” Another page expressed, “I swear to God that my intention was not to kill her, but I lost it.”
A handwriting expert confirmed that Urfan Sharif wrote the note. The three defendants, arrested in September last year after arriving from a flight from Dubai, all deny the charges of murder and causing or allowing the death of a child.
