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Wife of accused 'killed children' Wife of accused 'killed children'
(about 2 hours later)
A jealous husband killed his "deeply disturbed" wife after she killed their three children, a court has heard. A husband accused of killing his wife and three children, told a court that it was his wife who had murdered their two sons and daughter.
Rahan Arshad, 36, denies murdering his 32-year-old wife Uzma and three young children at their home in Cheadle Hulme, Greater Manchester. Rahan Arshad denies murdering Uzma, 32, 11-year-old Adam, Abbas, eight and two-year-old Henna at their Cheadle Hulme home in Greater Manchester.
He admits losing control and killing her in a moment of mental aberration, Ian Glenn QC, defending, said.He admits losing control and killing her in a moment of mental aberration, Ian Glenn QC, defending, said.
But Mr Glenn told Manchester Crown Court that Mrs Arshad was the more likely killer of the children. Mr Arshad, 36, said he found the children dead when he returned home.
The court was told that Mrs Arshad was on a slippery slope into an abyss of mental paranoia and suicidal thoughts at the time of the killings in July. He told Manchester Crown Court that when he asked his wife what had happened she replied: "Are you satisfied?"
An entry in her diary, recovered from her bedside table, read: "Allah, take me to yourself." The four bodies were discovered at the couple's home in Turves Road, on 20 August last year.
The question is, which one of them killed the children? Ian Glenn, defending She was screaming and shouting so I went for a drive Rahan Arshad
"If I could start again, I would have not any lies in my life." They had lain undiscovered for almost a month and were badly decomposed.
Mr Arshad is accused of repeatedly clubbing Mrs Rahan, 32, and their sons Adam, 11, and Abbas, eight, and daughter Henna, six, with a rounders bat. Mr Arshad denies four counts of murder.
Their bodies lay undiscovered for almost a month after the murders at their family home. He said the family had been due to take a holiday to Dubai but he had to cancel the trip because he could not afford it.
Mr Glenn was addressing the jury directly ahead of Mr Arshad's appearance in the witness stand. He told the court he arrived home after a day out with the children and told his wife about the holiday.
"The question is, which one of them killed the children?" he said. Mr Arshad said: "She kicked off. She was screaming and shouting so I left the house and went out for a drive."
"If the defendant returned home to find his wife had killed his three children, you can't imagine a better case for provocation for killing her. He claimed he returned around an hour later and saw the children's bodies.
He said: "I couldn't believe it. I went straight upstairs. I went straight into the bedroom to confront Uzma.
Mr Arshad then said his wife asked in Urdu, "are you satisfied?".
The family's bodies lay undiscovered for almost a monthThe family's bodies lay undiscovered for almost a month
"It is an unusual case, it is a shocking case. All four victims were killed with a rounders bat bought by Mr Arshad only days before the murders.
"We would say this, we have a father, or a mother, who was mentally ill. When asked if he remembered seeing the bat, Mr Arshad said: "I found myself in the bath with the bat."
"Only one of these two was mentally ill unfortunately, and that was Uzma, and that tends towards concluding she did it." He later took a pre-booked flight to Thailand, where he remained until 30 August.
Mr Glenn said the defence would call evidence from doctors and other witnesses, saying Mrs Arshad was paranoid and suicidal, and that her mental health was in decline. He was arrested at the Thai-Malaysia border and flown back to the UK.
"We suggest she was on that very slippery slope of a depressive illness. She was sliding down into that abyss. Shortly after being arrested he told police: "I confess to the murder. My beautiful kids. I don't regret killing that bitch, but my kids, killing my kids..."
"When he (Mr Arshad) goes into the witness box, he will speak of a mental aberration of his own. He lost control and killed his wife." Asked about the comments, Mr Arshad replied he had meant that he had killed Uzma but he denied killing his children.
The trial continues.