A teenage girl has lost her life after being subjected to one of the most inhumane treatment of all times by a family that inflicted serious injuries on her with dangerous weapons.
Shahena Uddin
A teenage girl was beaten to death by her own family after living under a 'regime of fear' in which she was forced to lick the toilet bowl and eat her own faeces, a court has heard.
Shahena Uddin, 19, who was one of eight siblings, was 'regularly punished' by her brothers and sisters, for 'crimes' such as eating at the wrong speed. Punishments would allegedly include being force-fed rice and paper and being made to stand for long periods staring into a toilet bowl.
She was even banned from using the toilet at their home in Watford but would be punished further if she attempted to use the sink, St Albans Crown Court was told.
The house of the crime under investigation
But the violence is alleged to have plumbed new depths of depravity in October last year when she was found beaten to death on her bathroom floor after choking on her own vomit.
The court heard how, when she was found the following day, the Bangladeshi teenager had endured 'several beatings' including with weapons and that both sides of her head had been severely attacked.
The policeman stationed at the house
Ambulance staff, who were called to the house by the family, were told she was sick and fainted. But by then, her four brothers, a sister and her two sisters-in-law had attempted to cover their tracks, the court was told.
Suhail Uddin, 35, and his wife Salma Begum, 32 - who became the teenager's legal guardians in 2010 are now standing trial, accused of Shahena's murder in a case that is currently gathering momentum.