Sara Sharif: Video captures moment 10-year-old girl's family detained by police on plane

The court was shown the CCTV footage that was captured as the accused were arrested in September last year at Gatwick Airport as ITV New Correspondent Ian Woods reports


Sara Sharif's stepmother told officers, "I think you're looking for us", when police boarded a plane and detained the ten-year-old's alleged killers, a court has heard.

Video footage of the interaction was played to jurors at London's the Old Bailey on Friday, with a police-worn body camera capturing the moment that Beinash Batool, 30; Sara's father, Urfan Sharif, 42; and her uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, were detained.

The trio had originally fled to Pakistan the day after Sara died at the family home in Woking, Surrey, on August 8 last year.

Surrey Police found Sara's body in a bunkbed after Urfan Sharif called from Pakistan to say that he had beaten her "too much" for being "naughty".

Sara had suffered dozens of injuries, including burns and human bite marks, in what the prosecution allege was a campaign of abuse culminating in her death.

All three defendants, formerly of Hammond Road, Woking, have denied murder and causing or allowing the death of a child between December 16 2022 and August 9 2023.

A press conference in Pakistan was broadcast on September 6 2023 featuring Sharif and Batool, who complained that family were being harassed.

On September 13 last year, police received information that the three defendants would be arriving at Gatwick airport on a flight from Dubai that evening.

The footage which jurors were shown on Friday was recorded at 7.42pm on September 13, seven minutes after their flight had touched down at Gatwick Airport.

(From left to right) Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Faisal Malik were accused of carrying out a campaign of abuse leading to Sara's death. Credit: Surrey Police

As officers approached, Batool raised her hand and said: "I think you're looking for us."

Urfan Sharif, who had been sitting next to her, was asked if he had any items or bags on the flight and replied that he did not.

After being taken off the plane, the defendants were arrested and put into police vans.

The following day, each defendant was interviewed by police but chose to make no comment.

The Old Bailey trial continues.


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