Murder jury 'must not convict' Sarwar

A DEFENCE QC yesterday told a jury that finding the man accused of murdering a radio presenter guilty would be a tragic miscarriage of justice.

Donald Findlay QC was making his closing speech at the trial of Khalid Sarwar, 29, who denies murdering 54-year-old agony aunt Nasim Jamil in her flat in Byres Road, Glasgow, on 9 December last year.

Mr Findlay told the jury: "This was an horrific crime, it was horrific violence. You do not want to contemplate what the last moments on earth were like for Mrs Jamil. Horror beyond the imaginings of decent human beings. People do awful things to one another.

"However, there has to be a deep reason why anyone would inflict this level of violence. Where do you find anything in the evidence to suggest that such a person was Khalid Sarwar?

"Why would Khalid Sarwar do that to a woman he was obviously very fond of. There is no reason to show why he would want to."

Mr Findlay told the jury that there was not a scrap of evidence to prove that Sarwar murdered Mrs Jamil and then stole money and jewellery from her. He said: "To convict Khalid Sarwar would be no more or no less than a tragic miscarriage of justice.

"This is a case about circumstantial evidence. There were no eye witnesses and no confession."

The trial before Lord Brodie continues.