１０歳少女殺害、国外逃亡の父親と継母ら帰国直後に逮捕　英

【ロンドンＡＦＰ＝時事】英警察は１３日、１０歳の少女を殺害した容疑で、パキスタンに逃亡していた父親や継母ら３人を帰国直後に逮捕したと発表した。（写真は英ウォーキングで遺体で発見されたサラ・シャリフさん。サリー警察提供）
　サラ・シャリフさんの遺体は先月１０日、英南部サリー州ウォーキング近郊の自宅で発見された。検視の結果、長期間にわたり「複数箇所に重傷」を負っていたことが分かった。
　警察は、父親のウルファン・シャリフ容疑者（４１）とパートナーのビナシュ・バトゥール容疑者（２９）、シャリフ容疑者の弟のファイサル・マリク容疑者（２８）が、遺体が見つかる前日の９日にパキスタンに逃亡したとみて、行方を追っていた。
　サリー警察はテレビ放送された記者会見で「今晩、ガトウィック空港で、３人が逮捕された」と述べた。
　英警察の慣例に従い氏名は出さず、「ドバイ発の便から降りた、４１歳と２８歳の男と２９歳の女が殺人容疑で逮捕された」「現在、勾留されており、今後取り調べが行われる」と付け加えた。
　３人は空路で、パキスタンからドバイ経由で英国に戻った。
　パキスタン警察は先に、３人は自主的に英国に帰国し、当局もそれを把握していると話していた。
　シャリフ、バトゥール両容疑者は今月上旬、動画を公開。その中でバトゥール容疑者はサラちゃんの死は「事故」だったと主張し、「私たちは英当局と協力し、裁判で争う用意がある」と述べていた。
　シャリフ容疑者らとパキスタンに来たサラさんのきょうだいとされる１～１３歳の子ども５人は１１日、シャリフ容疑者の父親の自宅で見つかった。５人は現在、パキスタン当局に保護されている。
　サラさんの実母でポーランド人のオルガ・シャリフさんは先にポーランドのテレビ局の取材に応え、先月遺体安置所で身元確認をした際、娘だと判別できないほど傷ついていたと話した。
　片方の頬は腫れ、もう片方の頬には青あざがあったという。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2023/09/14-17:24）

UK police on Wednesday arrested three British-Pakistani relatives of a 10-year-old girl on suspicion of her murder, moments after the trio landed back in Britain following a month on the run in Pakistan.
Sara Sharif's body was discovered at the family's home near Woking, southeast England, on August 10. A post-mortem examination revealed she had sustained multiple and extensive injuries over a sustained period.
Police had said Urfan Sharif, 41, his partner Beinash Batool, 29, and his brother Faisal Malik, 28, fled to Pakistan to take refuge with relatives before Sara's body was found, sparking an international manhunt.
This evening... three people were arrested in connection with this investigation at Gatwick Airport, Surrey Police detective superintendent Mark Chapman said in a televised statement.
Two men, aged 41 years and 28 years, and a woman aged 29 years were arrested on suspicion of murder after disembarking a flight from Dubai, he added, without naming the trio in line with UK police practice.
The suspects flew from Pakistan to Britain via the gulf hub.
They are currently in custody and will be interviewed in due course.
A Pakistan police spokesman had earlier said that Sharif, Batool and Malik had voluntarily returned to Britain with the prior knowledge of authorities.
I confirm that they have not been arrested but they left voluntarily, Raja Haq Nawaz, a lawyer for Urfan Sharif's father, also told AFP.
- 'An incident' -
Earlier this month, Sharif and Batool appeared in a video distributed to media, in which Batool said they were willing to cooperate with UK authorities and fight our case in court.
All of our family members have gone into hiding as everyone is scared for their safety, she said, alleging malpractice by the Pakistan police hunting them.
In the two-and-a-half-minute low-quality video there was little mention of Sara's death, which Batool called an incident.
Surrey Police have said the fugitive trio were thought to have flown to Islamabad on August 9, the day before Sara was discovered at the family's home in the village of Horsell, just outside Woking.
An early morning emergency call alerting officers to Sara's death was made from Pakistan by a man identifying himself as the father, detectives said.
The house was otherwise empty, and the manhunt continued with Interpol and Britain's foreign ministry coordinating with authorities in Pakistan.
Five of her purported siblings, aged between one and 13 and brought to Pakistan with the adults, were discovered at the home of Urfan Sharif's father on Monday.
A magistrate placed the children into state protective services on Tuesday.
- 'Difficult time' -
Surrey Police have said they are working with other local and international authorities to secure the children's safe return.
But it is unclear where they will ultimately be sent or for how long they may be kept in the custody of Pakistan's child protection bureau.
Sara's Polish mother, Olga Sharif, had been informed of the arrests and is being supported by specialist officers, the UK force also noted.
Our thoughts remain with her and those affected by Sara's death at this very difficult time, Chapman said.
Olga Sharif has said in an interview that she could barely recognise her daughter's small, battered body when she identified her at the mortuary last month.
She told Polish television one of her cheeks was swollen and the other side of her face was bruised.
Olga and Urfan separated in 2015, and Sara and her older brother had lived with their mother until a family court determined in 2019 that they should reside with their father, according to UK media.
Sara had been removed from primary school in April to be homeschooled by her stepmother and was known to the local council's social services department, the British reports said.
burs-jj/giv