Sara Sharif's 'sadist' dad and stepmum jailed for 73 years total after torturing girl to death
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The father and stepmother who murdered 10-year-old Sara Sharif and subjected her to years of abuse have both been jailed for life, and will serve a minimum of 73 years between them. Sara was found dead in a bunk bed at her home in Woking, Surrey, on August 10 last year after her 42-year-old father Urfan Sharif rang police from Pakistan to confess he had beaten her "too much". She had suffered more than 25 broken bones, iron burns on her bottom, scalding marks to her feet, and human bites during a campaign of abuse.
Today, Sharif was told he will serve a minimum of 40 years behind bars before he is eligible for parole. Sara's stepmother Beinash Batool was given a minimum term of 33 years. Her uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, who lived with them, was convicted of causing or allowing her death after a jury deliberated for nine hours and 46 minutes. He was sentenced to 16 years.
Delivering his sentencing remarks, Mr Justice Cavanagh described some of the 71 “fresh” injuries found on Sara’s body during the post-mortem, including two open burn wounds on her buttocks from an iron, a break in her hyoid neck bone, six human bite marks and a brain injury.
He said: “This treatment of a 10-year-old child is nothing short of gruesome.” The judge added that no medical help was sought for Sara and “it’s hard to imagine” the terror the girl must have felt. Authorities missed a string of chances to save the tragic child, as she was handed back to the couple after brief spells in care - despite at least 15 warnings about her dad's violence. Sharif hit Sara with a cricket bat and iron bar, throttled her, and threw a mobile phone at her head.
