Pregnant lover of Wadeema's father confesses in court

The girlfriend of a man charged with torturing his two daughters and killing one of them insists she carried out the horrific crime.

Emirati Al Anood Mohammad Al Ameri, who is six months pregnant, appeared at Dubai Court of First Instance yesterday alongside her lover, Hamad Saod Juma Al Sherawi, the 29-year-old father of Wadiyma and Meyra.

Al Sherawi and Al Ameri were in the dock to face charges of abusing and torturing Wadiyma, eight, and Meyra, seven, causing Wadiyma’s death and illegally burying a body.

Al Ameri told the court: “Yes I tortured them. Their father did nothing. I physically assaulted them and burned them and helped to bury Wadiyma’s body.”

The girls’ father, Al Sherawi, said: “I didn’t beat them up and didn’t kill Wadiyma. The stun gun police found

didn’t even work. There were no broken bones or strangulation signs on her (Wadiyma’s) body.”

He claimed the injuries Meyra sustained were the result of a botched procedure by hospital staff when she was treated for a broken arm.

However, Al Sherawi confessed to burying Wadiyma’s body in the desert. He said: “I made a mistake when I buried her.”

Al Sherawi added: “I did it because I have psychological problems.” However, the confessions in court contradict details from the investigation.

Seven-year-old Meyra told police Al Anood and her father had both abused her and her sister.

“They used wire, bars and a stun gun to torture us,” she said. “They used to throw boiling water on us and even used a heated iron on my skin for no reason. They used to lock us in the bathroom, tie our hands up and make us eat our own faeces.”

And a policeman who questioned the defendants said Al Sherawi admitted beating his daughters, adding: “He said he beat them because they were laughing and he believed they were possessed.”

Meyra said that on the day her sister died she had been tortured and was bleeding. She added the defendants left the house with Wadiyma’s lifeless body.

The case was adjourned.

ali.shouk@7days.ae