Latest news with #Shakoor
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Evidence destroyed after fire deaths
Key evidence was unwittingly destroyed at the start of an investigation into the deaths of six family members in a house fire in 2012, according to an investigator who worked on the case. Dr Sabah Usmani, 44, and her five children - Hira, 12; Sohaib, 11; Muneeb, nine; Rayyan, six; and Maheen, three - died following the fire at their home in Harlow, Essex. Her husband, Dr Abdul Shakoor, survived the blaze. A fire investigation officer has told a BBC podcast that a forensics contractor allowed crucial evidence to be put in a skip, while another investigator claimed samples were packaged incorrectly. Essex Police said it could not comment on the claims as the investigation was still live. David Hadjicostas, then a fire investigation officer for Essex Fire and Rescue Service, said the forensic science adviser from Key Forensic Services failed to test the external lock on the family's front door, which Dr Shakoor and his neighbour reported was open. Dr Shakoor told officers there was a problem with the door's lock, which prompted the police to consider an opportunist burglar. Mr Hadjicostas said he saw the adviser try the lock on the inside of the door, but not the outside. "I always thought that was particularly odd because he was adamant that the door was lockable and he only tried 50% of the lock," he said. The door was removed from its frame and put in a skip before the fire team had examined it, he added. In the early hours of 15 October 2012, the family, originally from Pakistan and who moved to the house in Barn Mead in 2011, awoke to a loud sound and thick smoke. After trying to raise the alarm from a bedroom window, Dr Shakoor jumped out to seek help. Firefighters later had to restrain him from going back into the property. A neighbour's car had been set on fire at the same time. Police at first suspected arson, but 11 days after the fire, a laptop bag containing photos belonging to the Shakoor family was found dumped at a nearby estate. Officers then launched a murder investigation, believing someone had burgled the family home and stolen the laptop before setting the house on fire. After receiving complaints about work undertaken by Key Forensic Services, Essex Police appointed Iain Peck, a specialist fire investigator from Prometheus Forensic Services, to review it. Mr Peck said he was disappointed by the way samples of a large piece of laminate flooring in the lounge, where it was believed the fire started, had been taken. "Whoever was doing the packaging had stuck a nylon bag over one end, another nylon bag over another end, and then used Sellotape to kind of make some sort of Christmas cracker." The samples were rejected as they needed to be airtight so they could retain vapour from any potential accelerant used, he added. Mr Peck said the neighbour's car, a silver Ford Focus, which had been set alight the night of the fire, had not been fully excavated and appropriate samples had not been taken within 24 hours. Prometheus Forensic Services complained to the Forensic Science Regulator at the Home Office at the time about Key Forensic Services' work. However, the regulator said although a code of practice and conduct was published in 2011, it did not cover fire scene investigation. 'Solving my family's murder will bring closure' Father still hopes family's killers will be found The government-owned Forensic Science Service (FSS) was closed down in early 2012 by the Home Office, with much of its work taken on by private companies which had to bid for contracts with police forces in England and Wales. In 2011 Andrew White, then chief executive of Hertfordshire Police Authority, warned in The Guardian the decision to close FSS was so rushed that forces would have to turn to private suppliers without doing due diligence. Mr Hadjicostas believes the loss of the FSS affected the investigation. "The impact of that is when we're trying our best to try to find the cause and the origin of a fire in very, very difficult circumstances, you want your best people there," he added. Essex Police discovered there were three other burglaries within the hour of the fire at Barn Mead and seven people have been arrested during the investigation. One person arrested in May 2013 was found to have a glass fragment on their clothing that matched the neighbour's torched car, but not all the fragments were tested. Coroner Caroline Beasley-Murray recorded an open verdict at an inquest into the deaths at Chelmsford Coroner's Court in 2014, adding: "Not all of the pieces of the jigsaw are there yet." Dr Shakoor said he remained frustrated that no-one had been brought to justice and that he was "losing hope." "I'm really shocked because I never thought they wouldn't have done it properly. We put our trust in the relevant departments," he said. "We need some sort of a conclusion and some closure." Key Forensic Services said it was still working with Essex Police and therefore unable to comment. It was unable to put the BBC in touch with the forensic scientist it used for the case, and we have been unable to trace them. Essex Police said it remained committed to doing all it could to give Dr Shakoor justice for the loss of his family. It added the investigation remained live and so there were elements raised by the BBC that it could not speak about. The Home Office said forensic investigations were conducted independently of the government and that it could not comment on specific aspects of the case as it remained an ongoing investigation. A spokesperson added the Home Office would be appointing a national forensic science lead who would "transform our approach to forensics, ensuring these vital services deliver justice for victims". You can listen to BBC podcast series Crime Next Door - Who Killed the Shakoors? on BBC Sounds Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. 'Solving my family's murder will bring closure' Fatal fire murder 'loyalties changed' Essex Police
New York Times
12-02-2025
- Business
- New York Times
The Watch Repairmen of Doha
At the century-old Souk Waqif here, dozens of watch repairmen spend their days maintaining luxury timepieces and doing more mundane jobs like replacing the batteries in digital watches. Most of these workers and others like them — who tailor traditional Arab clothing, craft cultural accessories and do thousands of service jobs — are immigrants from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and other countries. In Qatar, they make up nearly 90 percent of the emirate's population of almost 2.7 million. 'I had no experience with watches when I first came here,' said Mohamed Fahim Shakoor, who immigrated from Sri Lanka 30 years ago. 'But I was willing to learn, and the owner took a chance on me.' The owner of Taj Jewelers and Watches, Faris Hajazi, immigrated from Saudi Arabia, and said he had given jobs to many immigrants over the years. Part of the Community Amid the sounds of chiming clocks inside and the calls for Muslim prayer outside, Mr. Shakoor and another repairman were minding the Taj shop in the cavernous ground floor of the Ramada Old Town building, adjacent to Souk Waqif, on a recent evening. The business opened in the mid-1990s, around the same time that Mr. Shakoor, now 59, arrived in the region. His fellow employees taught him how to repair mechanical watches, he said, noting that many of them had since returned to their native countries. But he has remained in Qatar — even though his wife and children are still in Sri Lanka, and he can visit only a few times a year — because the job ensures that he can provide for them in a way he cannot at home. And Mr. Shakoor said he now felt like part of the community. 'Sometimes we have families come in together,' he said. 'We had one regular customer recently in his 20s who came in with his grandfather, who had an old pocket watch we repaired.' His colleague, Abdul Bari Rahmatallah, 52, has worked at the business for five years, but he repaired watches for more than 30 years in his native India. He said he had noticed quite a difference in watch service between the two countries: Many Qatari customers not only own more than one watch but also expect fast service and are willing to pay for it. 'Sometimes it takes other shops a long time to repair watches, especially if they send it off to Switzerland for repairs, which can take a month or more,' he said. 'But our customers can bring us a watch, and a few days later we can have it back to them. We get lots of recommendations that way.' Yet he fears that the tradition of personal service that the company provides — as well as the arts of mechanical watch repair — is not being handed down in this part of the world in the same way that they are in, say, Europe and East Asia. 'Younger people here aren't learning about watches,' Mr. Rahmatallah said. 'In India, it's the same. Older men like us are doing the work. We try to recruit, and I would like to train younger people. We also don't know of any watch repairmen who are training their sons, for example.' On a recent day, Mr. Rahmatallah was working on a Rolex GMT Master II from the 1980s. With a headband holding his loupe firmly over his eye, he dissected its interior. The balance wheel was broken. 'If that stops, everything stops,' he said. He anticipated that the repair would be a four-day job, and noted that the customer, a watch collector, was a regular who appreciated the Taj's quick turnarounds. But, 'I do get a lunch break,' he said with a laugh. Mobile Service For Iftikar Hussein, 70, attracting customers who need watch repair is all about being visible. 'I knew a little bit about watch repair in Pakistan, but I learned most of it here,' he said, referring to several watch shops around Doha where he worked after immigrating to Qatar in 1981. He struck out on his own about 25 years ago: 'I had a little shop inside the souk, but I decided to be outside for better exposure. I see everything here.' Mr. Hussein was referring to his wooden booth, which, at about four feet wide and six feet tall, looks a bit like a carnival popcorn stand. He has used every bit of space, with drawers overhead and under the counter that are chock-full of watches, batteries and repair tools. And it has four wheels, so he can position the booth anywhere he thinks business will be best, and move it indoors during the searing heat of summer. On a recent day, Mr. Hussein had set up shop in an open-air market near the souk and was sitting on a slightly tattered office chair while potential customers shopped for spices, jewelry and snacks around him. 'My work is mostly replacing batteries on digital watches and polishing many kinds of watches,' he said. 'I'm really doing more cleaning than repairing. Sometimes the spring just needs some oil.' Mr. Hussein is known around the souk for his love of vintage watches. To prove it, he pulled two pocket watches, each more than a hundred years old, from plastic containers stored in the booth. 'Sometimes the tourists or residents from Europe bring these to me because it's much cheaper to repair here,' he said. 'If I can easily access the missing parts, I repair it. If it needs a special part, then I send them to another repair shop. I'm their first point of contact since there are so many shops in a huge area.' Meeting the Challenges In the nearby Gold Souk, a series of meandering streets lined mostly with whitewashed buildings whose windows display ornate gold jewelry, the Time & Tune shop prides itself on being able to repair the most challenging watch and clock problems. The company was founded in 1962 by a Pakistani immigrant named Mohammed Iqbal who initially used a small kiosk, much like Mr. Hussein's. Now it has a showroom stocked with many makes of watches and a repair workshop at the rear. Nadeem Fazal Iqbal, the eldest son, is a co-owner with his brother, Farooq Iqbal; they both have studied at the Watchmakers of Switzerland Training and Educational Program, best known as WOSTEP. With a team of five technicians and two salesmen, the business can handle a variety of requests about watches and even clocks, which Nadeem Fazal Iqbal called a rarity in Qatar. It has equipment such as the Greiner Waterproof Checker Junior, used to test watches' waterproof seals, and a Witschi Q Test 4000, which can test the timekeeping accuracy of quartz watches and clocks. 'We also do repairs for high-end clocks, including grandfather clocks that take some time to repair, that really utilize the machinery we have here,' he said. 'Our company is about bringing dead watches and clocks back to life.' Mr. Iqbal also stressed that the company had built up a different approach to customer service than repair shops in the lavish malls north of the old city and the huge resorts along the Persian Gulf. 'Time & Tune offers a more neighborly approach to watch repair, and I think a lot of Qataris and expats here want that,' he said. 'So much of the gulf region is huge malls with corporate brands, but the souk here is a place where people come to have dinner, stroll and shop among locally owned shops.'
