Shafilea sister denies beating

Shafilea Ahmed’s sister has denied telling a friend she was beaten by her parents and that they threatened to kill her.

Mevish Ahmed also denied telling Shahin Munir she should “give police her diaries” if anything happened to her.

Miss Ahmed, 21, was giving evidence for a second day in the trial of parents Iftikhar, 52, and Farzana, 49, who deny murdering 17-year-old Shafilea in Warrington, Cheshire, in September 2003.

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Andrew Edis QC, for the prosecution, told the jury about an incident in April 2009 when she was arrested on suspicion of stealing money from the family home.

He said: “You spoke to Shahin and told her that afterwards you were beaten by your mother and your father, thrown on the floor and they said that you should go to Pakistan right now and talked about finishing you and threatened to kill you.”

Miss Ahmed said: “No, I fell outside the house.”

The prosecution claimed Miss Ahmed had fallen out with her parents but “returned to the family” after they promised to withdraw the theft allegation.

Mr Edis said: “You had been arrested and investigated for the theft of £600 from your own house and you said (to Miss Munir), ‘I’m going back home, if anything happens to me give police the diary’.”

She replied: “I don’t recall that at all.”

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Chester Crown Court had earlier heard extracts of writings made by Miss Ahmed and given to Miss Munir which appeared to corroborate statements her older sister Alesha has made to the jury about Shafilea’s treatment by her parents and the night of her death.

In evidence, Alesha Ahmed told the court her parents had pushed Bradford-born Shafilea on to the settee and suffocated her by forcing a plastic bag into her mouth.

Mevish Ahmed described the documents as “free writing” and said they were all pieces of “fiction”.

Mr Edis read text messages between Miss Ahmed and Miss Munir in which Miss Munir appeared to be struggling with her conscience before and after speaking with police.

He suggested that in the run up to the trial Miss Ahmed tried to get her to hand over her diary. Miss Ahmed denied trying to intimidate a witness.

The trial continues.