Police name father as one of three sought over murder of Sara Sharif | UK news

The father of a 10-year-old girl who was found dead in Woking is being sought by police investigating her murder and is believed to be in Pakistan.

Sara Sharif was found at her home after officers were called from Pakistan by Sara’s father, Urfan Sharif, at about 2.50am on 10 August, Surrey police said.

The discovery at the semi-detached property in Hammond Road prompted a murder inquiry.

Det Supt Mark Chapman, from the force’s major crime team, said Sharif, his partner, Beinash Batool, and his brother, Faisal Malik, were wanted for questioning in the investigation.

He said it was believed that Sharif, 41, travelled to Islamabad on 9 August, a day before Sara’s death was discovered, with Batool, 29 and Malik, 28.

They travelled with five children aged between one and 13, he added.

A postmortem examination, which took place on Tuesday, did not establish the cause of Sara’s death and further tests are being carried out.

But the force said the examination revealed the child had suffered “multiple and extensive” injuries, which were likely to have been caused over a “sustained and extended” period of time.

There is no formal extradition treaty between the UK and Pakistan, but Chapman said that people had been extradited from the country before.

Police are working with the Crown Prosecution Service, Interpol, the National Crime Agency and Foreign Office to carry out their investigation and to liaise with Pakistani authorities.

Officers are not seeking to identify anyone else in connection with the investigation, Chapman said.

Sara’s mother is being supported by specialist officers and police say the two have not been in contact.