‘Husband threatened to kill us all’ says accused

A FATHER accused of murdering his daughter threatened to kill his wife and other children if his spouse revealed the truth, a court heard yesterday.

Iftikhar Ahmed, 52, and Far­zana Ahmed, 49, stand accused of murdering their daughter, Shafilea, 17, at their Cheshire home in September 2003.

The couple, from Warrington, have been on trial at Chester Crown Court for eight weeks and have continually
denied any knowledge of her murder.

But in a dramatic twist yesterday, Farzana Ahmed admitted that an “incident of violence” towards Shafilea did occur in the family home on 11 September, 2003, an allegation she had previously denied.

Henry Riding, prosecuting, told the jury the new defence case statement from Farzana Ahmed alleges she came downstairs to discover her husband attacking Shafilea at 9:30pm.

She says her husband was “very angry” and was hitting and slapping Shafilea about the face.

Farzana Ahmed claims she tried to intervene, but was told to “shut up”.

She says she tried to “protect” her daughter, but was pushed away and then “punched with a clenched fist”.

She says only one other child – Mevish – saw what was happening and she “anticipated” she could also be harmed by her husband, so she took her upstairs and stayed with the other children in a bedroom.

Farzana Ahmed says she was “extremely scared” and stayed in the room for some 20 minutes. When she went downstairs, Shafilea and her husband were gone.

When Iftikhar Ahmed returned, she says she asked him where Shafilea was, and he responded: “If you care for your dear life and that of your children, don’t ever ask me this question again.”

Mr and Mrs Ahmed both deny murder.

The trial continues