Parents deny role in daughter's killing

A mother wept today as she and her husband denied any involvement in the death of their teenage daughter, whose body was found by a river.

Farzana Ahmed broke down during a surprise appearance at a press conference to launch a murder investigation after the death of her daughter Shafilea, 17.

Shafilea's body was discovered three weeks ago beside a Cumbrian river but was only identified yesterday after forensic tests.

The teenager, from Warrington in Cheshire, disappeared six months ago following a trip to Pakistan. During the trip she drank bleach after being introduced to an arranged marriage suitor.

Her parents Farzana, 41, and husband Iftikhar, 44, were arrested in December on suspicion of kidnapping her. They were later released on police bail. At the press conference - which they had earlier not been expected to attend - they issued a statement through their solicitor Milton Firman.

He said: "Mr and Mrs Ahmed wish to confirm once more that they strenuously deny any direct or indirect involvement in their daughter's untimely demise. If called upon to do so, they shall not hesitate to defend their good and unblemished names in any court.

"Quite obviously, Mr and Mrs Ahmed are as anxious as anyone to discover the real truth as to what happened to Shafilea in September 2003 and in the endless months since then. The police have their total co-operation as all parties must strive to discover the truth about Shafilea's tragic ending."

He added: "The family's own lives have been in turmoil ever since their beloved Shafilea disappeared. Now should be the time for them to be left to grieve and for the authorities to go elsewhere to find those truly responsible for any foul play."

Through Mr Firman, Shafilea's parents described her as " beautiful, bright and shining no more".

Her body was formally identified after DNA tests, but a ring and bracelet matching jewellery worn by the teenager was also found on the body.

Detectives said the family told them they did not report Shafilea missing because she had disappeared twice before, but had turned up.

Detective Chief Inspector Geraint Jones from Cheshire Police refused to be drawn on whether the young woman died because she refused to take part in an arranged marriage. He said he had never used the term "honour killing" and had an open mind as to all possible motives.

Her body was found obscured by undergrowth beside the river Kent near Sedgwick, in Cumbria, and was found by workmen only because of high floodwaters.

Mr Jones said: "A post-mortem of Shafilea's body has not been able to provide a precise cause of death." But he said forensic experts had determined her body "had been concealed at that location for some months and perhaps on the night she went missing".

Mr Jones added: "Shafilea was an intelligent, ambitious and popular girl. She had a bright future and her death is a tragedy."

He said there was evidence of a boyfriend on the scene the day she went missing. Shafilea was picked up on 11 September at 9pm from her place of work, a call centre in Warrington.

Her family say they last saw her at 11pm that day. Mr Jones said he believed she died on that day or very soon afterwards.