Sara Sharif's father admits he has no credibility after lying

The father of schoolgirl Sara Sharif admitted he has no credibility after spending six days lying to try to blame his wife for the girl's death, a court has heard. 

The 10-year-old, was found dead at her home with dozens of injuries including human bite marks and iron burns, in Hammond Road, Woking, on 10 August 2023.

Urfan Sharif, 42, denies murder and causing or allowing the death of a child alongside his wife Beinash Batool, 30, and Sara's uncle, 29-year-old McDonald's worker Faisal Malik.

The schoolgirl had at least 71 external injuries inflicted on her and was tortured and regularly beaten in the months before she died, the Old Bailey has heard.

Urfan spent his first six days in the witness box denying any involvement in Sara's death but he dramatically told jurors yesterday that he took 'full responsibility' for her death.

He admitted regularly tying Sara up and beating her with a cricket bat in the weeks before her death but denied an intention to cause her 'serious harm.'

He had previously blamed his wife for causing Sara's death.

Urfan continued his evidence today wearing a green Puma tracksuit.

Malik's barrister Michael Ivers, KC, asked him: 'What does the word credibility mean?'

'If you're telling the truth and if people will believe what you're saying,' Urfan replied.

'Do you think you have a credibility problem?' Mr Ivers asked.

'Yes sir,' Urfan replied.

'Why?' Mr Ivers said.

'Because I didn't tell the truth,' Urfan replied.

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'The oath you took on your holy book meant nothing, did it?' Mr Ivers said.

'I was wrong,' Urfan replied.

'These ladies and gentlemen, your jury, walked by you for a whole week walked back for a whole week, looked at you and you looked at them, didn't you? And when you started crying at times, was it real or not?' Mr Ivers said.

'It is real sir. I lost my daughter, you can't question that pain,' Urfan replied.

'It wasn't about that pain, it was about you seeking to deceive everyone in this room,' Mr Ivers said.

'No sir, the pain is real,' Urfan said.

'Your actions weren't you mourning the loss of your daughter but you seeking to persuade these 12 people of a pack of lies,' Mr Ivers said.

'I did lie but you can't imagine my pain. I'm a bad father, a very bad father but I'm still a father,' Urfan said.

Mr Ivers asked Urfan if he had imagined his own daughter's pain.

'I can't sir,' Urfan replied.

'But you must have seen it, as you beat her with a bat? Have you ever had a broken bone yourself?' Mr Ivers said.

'Nor sir,' Urfan replied.

'And you know how many broken bones she suffered, don't you? I don't want to upset people, but she must have screamed, cried and heaven knows what?' Mr Ivers said.

Urfan nodded.

'And you did that, and then for a whole week you actually tried to blame someone else for what you did, didn't you?' Mr Ivers said.

'Yes sir,' Urfan said.

Urfan admitted that others would have suffered if his lies had been successful.

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He claimed he was telling the truth when he denied abusing Sara's mother Olga and two other Polish girlfriends.

Mr Ivers said that all three women had alleged they had been locked up in some way and had their passports taken away by Urfan.

Repeating the words he regularly said about Sara's abuse for six days, Urfan said: 'Every single time I was not at home.'

Mr Ivers said: 'What are the chances you could be so unlucky that all of these separate Polish women say the same thing about how they were treated by you?'

'It's a coincidence sir,' Urfan replied.

'Are you a confident man, Mr Sharif?' Mr Ivers said.

'Yes sir,' Urfan said.

'And you think you can tell these people that's all a coincidence and they'll believe you?' Mr Ivers said.

Urfan continued to deny the abuse.

'I wasn't at home sir,' he said.

Mr Ivers asked Urfan if he would tell women to bite children.

The jury has heard that there were bite marks on Sara's body.

Urfan and Malik provided dental impressions which experts say show they did not cause the bite marks but Batool refused.

Urfan did not answer Mr Ivers' question for 10 seconds before saying: 'There's certain things I can't explain sir, I've got no words.'

After the killing Urfan, Batool and Malik fled to Pakistan, leaving Sara's body in the three bedroom house in Woking.

The family returned from Pakistan on September 13 last year and were arrested at Gatwick Airport having flown back from Dubai.

Sara was found to have ten spinal fractures and further fractures to her right collar bone, both shoulder blades, both arms, both hands, three separate fingers, bones near the wrist in each hand, two ribs and her hyoid bone in the neck.

Sharif, Batool and Malik, all deny murder and causing or allowing the death of a child.

The trial continues.