COPS hunting the dad of a girl aged ten found dead at her home have arrested ten close relatives of the suspected killer.
Schoolgirl Sara Sharif was found dead at her home in Woking, Surrey, on August 10.
But her dad Urfan Sharif, 41, and partner Beinash Batool, 29, had already fled the UK for Pakistan.
A post-mortem examination found she had suffered "multiple and extensive injuries" over a "sustained and extended" period of time.
A police spokesman in Jehlum, 100 miles north-west of Lahore, said Sharif and his wife Batool were in hiding and ten close relatives have been taken into custody for questioning and an investigation.
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Among those detained include Mohammad Sharif, the father of Urfan, his brothers and cousins, the spokesman said.
Police in Pakistan often detain the close relatives of wanted suspects.
On Wednesday, Sara's stepmother spoke publicly for the first time since the little girl was found dead.
In a clip of the footage posted online by Sky, Batool described Sara's death as "an incident" and says that she and Sharif are willing to co-operate with UK authorities over the case.
Sharif and Batool left Britain with five children aged between one and 13, and Surrey Police want to question them over Sara's death.
Sara's mother Olga Sharif gave an interview in which she spoke of the harrowing experience of going to view her daughter's body.
She said: "One of her cheeks was swollen and the other side was bruised.
"Even now, when I close my eyes I can see what my baby looked like."
Ms Sharif separated from her husband in 2015 and Sara and her older brother had been living with her until 2019, when the family court ruled they should live with their father.
Ms Sharif still had equal rights to see the children and said while that was easy to maintain initially, it became increasingly harder over time.
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Sara's grandfather has told the BBC the girl's death was an "accident" and three family members who left the UK for Pakistan will "ultimately" return to face police questioning.
Muhammad Sharif said he saw Sara's father soon after he arrived in the city of Jhelum, in the South Asian country, and said his son had fled the UK out of "fear".
Surrey Police are appealing for information to help them gain a picture of Sara's life.
Cops said they found Sara's body at her family home in Woking at around 2.50am on August 10, after getting a 999 call from her father Urfan.
A spokesman added that the call was made from Pakistan, most likely the country's capital Islamabad.
Surrey Police said: "Officers identified three people they would like to speak to as part of the ongoing investigation into Sara’s death.
"These people have been identified as Sara’s father, Urfan Sharif, 41, his partner Beinash Batool, 29, and Urfan’s brother, Faisal Malik, 28.
"It is believed Urfan travelled to Islamabad, Pakistan, in company with his partner and his brother on Wednesday, 9 August.
"There were five children with them aged between a year and 13 years old."
Cops are not looking for anyone else in connection with Sara's death.
There is no extradition treaty between Pakistan and the UK.