Thursday, April 24, 2014
Style
Looking sharp for summer
»p13
Fatal fire family ‘mistake’
Pitch perfect
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council Cathaoirleach Carrie Smyth laughs with Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill, while Tommy Hanrahan and other sports fanatics showed off their ball skills at the opening of an allweather pitch at Marlay Park Picture: Jason clarke
THE WIFE and children of an Irish-based by Emma Sword doctor were killed by arsonists who targetfor the fatal stabbing of their friend, Antoin ed the wrong house, a court has heard. The innocent family perished in a petrol- Akpom, hours earlier. The prosecutor told the jury the Taufiq fuelled blaze at their home when it was mistakenly targeted in a revenge attack follow- family had no connection to the incident involving Mr Akpom or the eight defendants. ing the fatal stabbing of a fitness coach. The court heard that Mr Akpom had been Shehnila Taufiq, 47, her 19-year-old daughter Zainab, and sons Bilal, 17, and stabbed in the back in a ‘confrontation’ inJamal, 15, died when the fire engulfed their volving two 19-year-olds, Hussain Hussain terraced house in Wood Hill, Leicester, in and Abdul Hakim, at around 5.30pm on September 12, less than a mile away in Kent the early hours of September 13 last year. Neurosurgeon Dr Taufiq Sattar was work- Street. He was pronounced dead at 7pm. Mr Latham told the court the fire was ing in Dublin at the time of the blaze and had spoken to his family just an hour before started when petrol was poured through the letterbox of the Taufiqs’ home and ignited. the fire was set, the court heard. Kemo Porter, 19, Tristan Richards, 22, The blaze took hold at the bottom of the staircase, trapping the family, Nathaniel Mullings, 19, who were asleep upstairs. Shaun Carter, 24, Jackson Hussain was jailed for life Powell, 20, Aaron Webb, 20, with a minimum term of 15 Aaron Jeffers, 21, and a 17years for Mr Akpom’s muryear-old youth who cannot be der earlier this month. named for legal reasons, each The jury was told Hakim’s deny murdering the family. mother lived two doors down Opening the Crown’s case from the arson attack on the against the eight defendants Taufiq family home. Mr in their trial at Nottingham Latham said: ‘They simply Crown Court yesterday, got the wrong house – a tragQueen’s counsel Richard edy.’ The trial was adjourned Latham told the jury the fire until 10am today. was a ‘retribution process’ Tragedy: Dr Taufiq Sattar
Keep Dublin tidy – Please recycle this Metro Herald when you are finished with it