Sara Sharif ‘stood up for herself and had unquenchable spirit’ – judge

On Tuesday, the 10-year-old’s father Urfan Sharif, 42, and stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, were jailed for her murder.

Sara Sharif “stood up for herself” and had an “unquenchable spirit”, a judge said as he sentenced the 10-year-old’s family members over her death.

The schoolgirl suffered “unimaginable pain, misery and anxiety” as she was repeatedly beaten, burned, bitten and restrained at home in Woking, Surrey, before she died, the court heard.

On Tuesday, her father Urfan Sharif, 42, and stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, were jailed for her murder with Sharif handed a minimum term of 40 years and Batool given 33 years.

Screen grab taken from video of Mr Justice Cavanagh during the sentencing at the Old Bailey in London, of Sara Sharif’s father Urfan Sharif, stepmother Beinash Batool, and uncle Faisal Malik for the 10-year-old’s death. — Mr Justice Cavanagh’s voice shook as he described injuries Sara had suffered during the sentencing (Cameras in Court/PA Video)

Sara’s uncle, Faisal Malik, 29, who was found guilty of causing or allowing her death, was jailed for 16 years.

In his sentencing remarks, the judge paid tribute to the “beautiful little girl” who was “full of personality” and “adored” her younger brother.

He quoted a description of Sara from a teaching assistant at her primary school, who said she was a “bubbly, confident, chatty and engaging child” who was “a little feisty” and “wasn’t afraid to answer back”.

Undated handout photo issued by Surrey Police of Sara Sharif, then aged four. Sara Sharif’s father Urfan Sharif, 42, and stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, have been found guilty at the Old Bailey of the 10-year-old’s murder. Her uncle Faisal Malik, 29, was found guilty of causing or allowing her death — Sara was described as ‘feisty’ by a teaching assistant who worked at her primary school (Surrey Police/PA)

The judge continued: “It is clear that Sara stood up for herself and remained positive and cheerful in the most terrible circumstances.

“She was a very courageous little girl, with an unquenchable spirit. She loved to sing and dance.

“The jury was shown a video of Sara dancing in front of the TV a few days before she died.

Undated handout video grab image issued by Surrey Police of Sara Sharif, 10, singing and playing a guitar — Mr Justice Cavanagh said Sara loved to sing and dance (Surrey Police/PA)

Addressing the defendants, Judge Cavanagh said pieces of writing done by Sara were “among the most heartbreaking pieces of evidence” in the case, including a birthday card addressed to her father which read “Happy Birthday Dad, I love you so much”.

The judge said Sara had written a short story in which she described her stepmother “as a queen who is ‘beautiful and young'” and a letter to Sharif and Batool where she had apologised for answering back, and wrote “‘please forgive me I am so sorry'”.

“The reality was that abuse which for anyone else would be exceptional had become normalised for this little girl. She had known nothing else for much of her life,” he added.

Undated handout file photos issued by Surrey Police of Urfan Sharif (left) and Beinash Batool. Urfan Sharif, the father of 10-year-old Sara Sharif — Sara’s father Urfan Sharif (left) and stepmother Beinash Batool were jailed on Tuesday for her murder (Surrey Police/PA)

He added that Sara “was not particularly badly behaved” and “never did anything that might conceivably have justified any part of the treatment that she endured”.

The judge’s voice shook as he described some of the injuries found on Sara’s body during the post-mortem examination, 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.