Sara Sharif’s grandmother has told of the harrowing moment she saw her badly disfigured grandmother in a morgue and couldn’t recognise her.

The 10-year-old was found dead at her home in Woking, Surrey, last month, sparking a murder investigation.

A post-mortem examination found she had suffered ‘extensive injuries’ suffered over a ‘sustained and extended period of time’.

She was living with her father, Urfan Sharif, 41 and his partner, Beinash Batool, 29, who are being sought in Pakistan after reportedly leaving the UK along with Mr Sharif’s brother, Faisal Malik, the day before her body was found.

The exact nature of Sara’s injuries have not been fully disclosed, though Sara’s mum, Olga, described severe bruising and swelling on her daughter’s face when she went to identify her.

Speaking to Polish broadcaster TVN on Wednesday, Sara’s grandmother, Sylwia Kurz, said: ‘It wasn’t Sara [anymore], she was entirely changed and bruised.

‘If someone hadn’t told me it was Sara, I would have never believed it.’

Sara and her brother lived with their mother from 2015 to 2019, when a family court ruled they should live with Mr Sharif.

Olga told TVN: ‘One of her cheeks was swollen and the other side was bruised.

‘Even now, when I close my eyes I can see what my baby looked like.’

Sara’s mum had equal rights on spending time with her kids but said it became harder to maintain contact over time.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video

Ms Kurz said her daughter ‘wants to get her son back’, referring to the 13-year-old boy she had with Mr Sharif.

Olga added: ‘Their stepmother wrote to me not to come anymore because the children did not want to see me.

‘It’s not normal that once the children were happy, and arguing about who would talk to Mum first, and then the kids don’t even want to talk to me on the phone and are calling me the worst names.’

Mr Sharif and Ms Batool have since hit back at claims surrounding the case in a video statement and claimed press coverage had forced their family into ‘hiding’.

In a video shared with Sky News, Ms Batool said her side of the family is willing to cooperate with British police and ‘fight our case in court’.

She could be heard to say: ‘Firstly, I would like to talk about Sara. Sara’s death was an incident. Our family in Pakistan are severely affected by all that is going on.

‘All the media have been giving wrong statements and making up lies.

‘All of our family members have gone into hiding as everyone is scared for their safety.

‘The groceries have run out and there is no food for the kids as the adults are unable to leave their homes out of fear for safety.’

Mr Sharif, Ms Batool and Mr Malik are wanted by British and Pakistani police for questioning.

Surrey Police have expressed concern over the ‘welfare’ of ‘five children who travelled to Pakistan on August 9’, believed to be a group of youngsters aged between one and 13 years old who travelled with Mr Sharif and Ms Batool.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Source: Read Full Article