Follow us
The father of Shafilea Ahmed has told a jury that he has no responsibility for his daughter's death.
Taxi driver Iftikhar Ahmed says the ordeal of a murder trial has been devastating for him and his wife, Farzana.
As the defence case opened at Chester Crown Court, Ahmed cried as he faced questions about the discovery of his daughter's body. He said that she had been "a bubbly character...special in her own way".
Seventeen-year-old law student Shafilea's decomposing remains were found in 2004, five months after she had gone missing from the family home at Warrington in Cheshire.
From the witness box, Ahmed accused the police of "finger-pointing" from the day his daughter disappeared.
"A constant story has been told exactly the same over and over again...the issue of an arranged marriage."
Before he gave evidence, Ahmed was asked to read a statement made by his wife and co-accused.
His wife changed her story earlier this week, saying that, contrary to what she had told police, she did see her husband beating Shafilea on the day she went missing.
Despite the new statement, Ahmed said he "stilled loved her to bits".
He said the trial had made him and his wife closer because they were "fighting for justice for Shafilea".
"We want to know what has happened to her as we have from day one," he said.
Earlier in the trial, another of the Ahmed's daughters Alesha told the jury she had seen her parents pin Shafilea down on a settee and push a plastic bag into her mouth.
Both deny murdering Shafilea. The case is continuing.
Related Stories
