Couple face Khyra murder charge

The mother and stepfather of seven-year-old Khyra Ishaq, who allegedly starved to death, are to be charged with her murder. Khyra's body was found at her home in Birmingham in May. In a short statement, a spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service said it had authorised West Midlands Police to charge Junaid Abuhamza and Angela Gordon with the little girl's murder. "Following a detailed and careful review of the file, a decision has been reached that there is sufficient evidence to charge the two defendants with the murder of Khyra," the spokeswoman said. Gordon, 33, and Abuhamza, 29, had been accused of "causing or allowing" the death of Khyra, who died after paramedics were called to her home in Leyton Road, Handsworth, in the early hours of May 17. The defendants, who lived with Khyra at the address, are scheduled to appear for a directions hearing before the Recorder of Birmingham, Judge Frank Chapman, at the city's Crown Court tomorrow. Both Gordon and Abuhamza face separate charges of cruelty to five other children, who cannot be identified for legal reasons.

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ITN | August 13, 2008

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