Man has ‘no hatred’ for men who killed family in arson attack

The husband of a woman and three children who died in an arson attack on their home has said he has no hatred for the eight men convicted over their deaths.

Dr Muhammad Taufiq Al Sattar said that “You hate crime. You don’t hate individual people” over the convictions for the attack on his family’s home in Leicester last September.

A trial at Nottingham Crown Court heard the family died after their killers, bent on revenge, attacked the wrong house.

Shehnila Taufiq, 47, their 19-year-old daughter Zainab, and sons Bilal, 17, and Jamal, 15, all died when fire engulfed their home in Wood Hill in the early hours of September 13.

Yesterday, two men were jailed for life for the murders. Tristan Richards, aged 22, was told he would serve a minimum of 35 years for his part in the killings.

His accomplice, Kemo Porter, aged 19, was given a 25-year minimum term.

The killers had intended to target a different house in Wood Hill as they sought to avenge the fatal stabbing of a friend hours earlier.

There were sobs from the public gallery as Mr Justice John Griffith Williams read out the sentences.

Six other men who were cleared of murder but convicted of manslaughter over the deaths were also jailed.

They are Shaun Carter, aged 24; Nathaniel Mullings, aged 19; Jackson Powell, aged 20; Aaron Webb, aged 20; Akeem Jeffers, aged 21; and 17-year-old Cairo Parker.

Carter was sentenced to 15 years, while Mullings was handed 15 years’ detention in a young offender institution.

Webb, Powell, and Jeffers were each sentenced to 12 years behind bars. Parker, on account of his age, was given eight years’ detention.

The jury heard that Dr Taufiq had spoken to his family just an hour before the fire broke out. The judge praised the father.

“He told in the most moving of terms his loss, its effect upon him and his dedication to complete, in their memory, the family goal of setting up a community centre in Dublin,” the judge said.

“He too is a victim of what he described as a ‘heartless, malicious act’.”

Speaking outside court, Dr Taufiq said: “I’m satisfied at the sentence and I accept everything.

“My family is with me 24/7 spiritually and these are the main motives for me. My own belief, religion, my God, and my family are with me and these are the main motives for me to continue, which I have been doing for the last nine months and will continue until my last breath.

“I’m going back to Dublin tonight where I will continue working at the hospital as well as helping at the community centre.”

He said that he had decided to sell the house in Leicester, which had been uninsured at the time of the blaze.