Mother Stabbed to Death in Front of Child...

A terrified seven-year-old girl dialled 999 and told the operator: 'A man is trying to kill my mummy', a court has heard.

Aisha Bibi saw her mother Rabina, 34, stabbed 14 times in the neck, chest and back by Iranian Zakarya Rezaie, the jury was told.

Warwick Crown Court heard a recording of the 999 call in which Aisha said: 'He's my mummy's friend and he is trying to kill her with a knife.'

The operator asked what her mother's injuries were and Aisha replied: 'She's bleeding everywhere'.

Rezaie, 29, from Cardiff, denies murder, claiming he was provoked into killing Miss Bibi after she told him their relationship was over.

The court heard that minutes after the killing he handed himself into police and claimed he had been overcome by 'some sort of severe madness' after she attacked him with a penknife.

Miss Bibi, whose arranged marriage broke down six years ago, met Rezaie when he worked in a shop in Coventry and they had a brief relationship. But when she began seeing another man he became jealous and started pestering her. On September 3 last year he forced his way into her home in Foleshill, Coventry.

Prosecutor Rachel Brand, QC, said: 'This is a case of a man who couldn't accept the word "no". He couldn't accept it because he was clearly infatuated.'

The court heard that when Rezaie began banging on Miss Bibi's front door she called police - but rang back five minutes later to say he had left again.

In fact, Miss Brand told the court, Rezaie was already inside and had forced her to tell police he had gone.

The third call to police, from Aisha, came 26 minutes later.

Miss Brand said: 'The police found the little girl in the front room, crying. In the middle room they found Rabina Bibi on the floor.'

Yesterday, Rabina's neighbour recalled the moment she heard Aisha screaming for help.

Leigh Nesbeth, 34, told the court she was on Facebook when she heard screaming coming from Ms Bibi's house.

She said: 'I heard Aisha screaming 'mum don't, mum don't' and then more screaming. It was unusual for me to hear Aisha scream like that.

'I thought Sharon (Rabina's nickname) was telling Aisha off.'

The court also heard evidence from Ms Bibi's brother, Leaka Khan, 37, who got a desperate phone call just minutes before she was killed.

He told the court: 'My mobile phone went and I saw her name come up. I said 'hello' but there was just a shuffling noise like something was being moved around and then I heard Rabina say 'get off me, get off me'.

'I thought she had rang me by mistake so I hung up and rang back to have a go at her for wasting the credit on her phone but it went straight to answerphone.'

At one stage of yesterday's hearing Rezaie collapsed in the court and needed medical assistance.
Ms Bibi was so worried about her safety she bought a security camera which she installed at her home.
On the night of the killing, Rezaie - who was granted temporary permission to stay in the country last year - travelled to Coventry from Cardiff by train and knocked on Ms Bibi's door but she refused to let him in

When he began banging on her front door at 7.36pm she called the police for help but five minutes later she rang back saying he had left.

Miss Brand told the court that in fact Rezaie had forced his way into Ms Bibi's home and had ordered her to tell the police he had gone away.

But 26 minutes later, at 8.07pm, the police received a third call from the house.

Miss Brand said: 'The caller was Rabina's seven-year-old daughter.

'She asked for the police to come because she said a man named Jackie was trying to kill her mummy with a knife.

'It was an emotional call, made by a small child.

'She then told the police operator the man was leaving, and indeed he can be seen leaving [on the security camera footage] while the child was still on the phone.

'The police were there as soon as they could. In the house they found the little girl in the front room crying. In the middle room they found Rabina Bibi on the floor.'

Ms Bibi suffered stab wounds to her neck which penetrated the carotid artery and jugular vein, as well as knife wounds which had penetrated her lungs and liver.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission has launched an investigation into the case because Ms Bibi made a 999 call just minutes before the killing.

The trial continues.