Shafilea sister denies being 'coached by parents'

The youngest child of a couple accused of murdering their teenage daughter has denied being coached by her parents about what to tell the police regarding her sister's disappearance, a court heard today.

Iftikhar Ahmed, 52, and his wife Farzana, 49, of Liverpool Road, Warrington,are on trial at Chester Crown Court charged with killing their daughter Shafilea, 17, in 2003.

On Tuesday,  the court heard from their youngest child, who cannot be named for legal reasons and was giving evidence behind a screen.

The jury was told that she was seven years old at the time of the alleged murder and she told police that Shafilea went to bed before her on the night in question.

Andrew Edis QC, prosecuting, asked the witness: ``What I want to suggest to you is that you were told what to say.

``Were you told what to say?''

The witness responded: ``Not that I know of, no.''The witness repeatedly told Mr Edis that she could not remember many of the events of 2003.

Mr Edis asked the witness about conversations she had with her mother which were picked up by covert police recording devices.

In one conversation Mr Edis told the jury that Mrs Ahmed can be heard telling her youngest child not to say anything at school and if anyone asks about the disappearance of Shafelia to ``act as though you don't understand. Start talking about something else''.

Mr Edis put it to the witness that her parents were telling her what to say.

The witness responded: ``No.''She denied that either of her parents had ever been violent towards her and said she could not remember any violence directed towards Shafilea. She later told the court that she could only remember ``bits'' about her elder sister and did not even remember her 17th birthday, when she was a patient at Warrington General Hospital after drinking bleach in Pakistan.

``Do you remember anything about your sister at all?'' Mr Edis said.

``I remember bits,'' she said.

``Do you remember her running away from home?'' Mr Edis asked.

She replied: ``No.''

Iftikhar and Farzana Ahmed both deny murder

The trial continues