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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Murder accused blames child abuse | Murder accused blames child abuse |
| (about 10 hours later) | |
| A man accused of starving his seven- year-old stepdaughter to death in 2008, told a court he had been brutally abused himself as a child. | A man accused of starving his seven- year-old stepdaughter to death in 2008, told a court he had been brutally abused himself as a child. |
| Junaid Abuhamza, 30, also said he witnessed his father beating his younger sister to death. | Junaid Abuhamza, 30, also said he witnessed his father beating his younger sister to death. |
| Mr Abuhamza and Angela Gordon, 34, deny murdering Ms Gordon's daughter Khyra Ishaq in Birmingham in 2008. | Mr Abuhamza and Angela Gordon, 34, deny murdering Ms Gordon's daughter Khyra Ishaq in Birmingham in 2008. |
| He said: "In retrospect I see that all the actions that I exhibited in the household were due to my childhood." | He said: "In retrospect I see that all the actions that I exhibited in the household were due to my childhood." |
| Mr Abuhamza told Birmingham Crown Court he had not deliberately set out to starve Khyra, although he had sometimes denied her food as a punishment. | Mr Abuhamza told Birmingham Crown Court he had not deliberately set out to starve Khyra, although he had sometimes denied her food as a punishment. |
| Water punishment | Water punishment |
| Mr Abuhamza said he had learnt the behaviour from his father. | Mr Abuhamza said he had learnt the behaviour from his father. |
| "If I did not do as he wanted me to I would get no food," he said. | "If I did not do as he wanted me to I would get no food," he said. |
| Jurors were shown footage of seven-year-old Khyra Ishaq's home | |
| He denied locking the kitchen during the day so that Khyra and the other children in his care could not get to the food. | He denied locking the kitchen during the day so that Khyra and the other children in his care could not get to the food. |
| Mr Abuhamza admitted five child cruelty charges and told the court he beat Khyra with a cane, made her stand outside in the cold and threw cold water over her. | Mr Abuhamza admitted five child cruelty charges and told the court he beat Khyra with a cane, made her stand outside in the cold and threw cold water over her. |
| He said his father regularly used to beat him and also used to stop him breathing with a pillow. | He said his father regularly used to beat him and also used to stop him breathing with a pillow. |
| He told the court how in 1984 aged five he had watched his father beat his four-year-old sister Rachel to death for not flushing the toilet. | He told the court how in 1984 aged five he had watched his father beat his four-year-old sister Rachel to death for not flushing the toilet. |
| The defendant said he was about eight or nine years old when his father was released from prison after serving a sentence for manslaughter. | The defendant said he was about eight or nine years old when his father was released from prison after serving a sentence for manslaughter. |
| When asked by the prosecution if he blamed himself for Khyra's death, he said: "Yes I do." | When asked by the prosecution if he blamed himself for Khyra's death, he said: "Yes I do." |
| The court heard he suffered from bouts of schizophrenia and thought Khyra had a weird face because she was possessed by evil spirits. | The court heard he suffered from bouts of schizophrenia and thought Khyra had a weird face because she was possessed by evil spirits. |
| Khyra died on 17 May, 2008, after she was discovered at the family home in Handsworth, Birmingham, in a state of starvation. | Khyra died on 17 May, 2008, after she was discovered at the family home in Handsworth, Birmingham, in a state of starvation. |
| The case continues. | The case continues. |