Sara Sharif: Police in Pakistan detain members of the family to try to draw out father

Police in Pakistan have detained ten shut kinfolk of Sara Sharif to try to draw her father out of hiding.

Sara, 10, was discovered useless at her residence in Woking, Surrey, final month, prompting UK police to launch a homicide investigation.

The day earlier than her physique was found, her father, stepmother and uncle travelled to Pakistan with 5 youngsters.

Sara’s grandfather, who has urged his son to flip himself in and beforehand complained of police “harassment”, is amongst those that have been detained.

A spokesperson for Pakistan police mentioned detaining shut kinfolk could power the give up of Urfan Sharif, 41, and his spouse Beinash Batool, 29.

On Wednesday, Mr Sharif and Mr Batool appeared in a video shared with Sky News, during which they mentioned they’re prepared to co-operate with British authorities.

Ms Batool denied media reviews that Mr Sharif’s brother Imran mentioned Sara fell down the steps and mentioned the household has “gone into hiding”.

“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,” Ms Batool mentioned.

She spoke concerning the fear she has for the household’s security and claimed they’ve been misrepresented within the press.

“All the media have been giving wrong statements and making up lies,” she mentioned.

A autopsy examination final month revealed Sara had “suffered multiple and extensive injuries” that have been “likely to have been caused over a sustained and extended period of time”.

Her explanation for demise has but to be decided – however an inquest has heard it’s “likely to be unnatural”.

Sara had been residing together with her mom Olga from 2015 till 2019, when the household courtroom dominated she ought to reside together with her father.

Olga Sharif, who separated from Mr Sharif in 2015, mentioned she was haunted by the sight of her daughter’s physique in a mortuary.

“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,” she mentioned.

“They dressed her in Mickey Mouse pyjamas and she had a quilt over her.

“No mom ought to need to see one thing like that.”

Surrey Police mentioned it was working with Interpol, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the National Crime Agency on its investigation.

It added: “We remain absolutely committed to conducting a thorough investigation into Sara’s death. Any co-operation from the people we want to speak to will assist the enquiry.”