A FATHER who set fire to his house, killing his wife and seriously injuring his three daughters and a family friend, has been found guilty of murder and arson, but not guilty of the attempted murder of his daughters.
Birmingham Crown Court heard how 56-year-old Mohammed Riaz Inayat deliberately set fire to his house in Cateswell Road, Hall Green in the early hours of April 17 last year in order to stop his daughter from flying out to Dubai to marry her boyfriend as he believed it would bring dishonour to the family.
His daughter and wife were due to catch a flight to Dubai later that same day where she was going to get married.
While his wife, three daughters and a family friend slept upstairs, the defendant used petrol as an accelerant both upstairs and downstairs in the family home and then set it on fire, trapping his family upstairs. Neighbours called the emergency services and they tried in vain to rescue the occupants of the house. The three daughters and family friend jumped from the first floor bedroom windows resulting in them suffering broken bones and burns.
When the fire service arrived they entered the house and the found the body of the defendant’s wife, Naika Inayat, in one of the upstairs bedrooms. She had died as a result of smoke inhalation.
Read more: Father guilty of honour killing murder | Solihull Observer
Tags: Asian, halo project, honour based violence, victims
