Arthur's Seat murder trial told of abuse code words
- Published
Fawziyah Javed was pregnant when she died
The mother of a pregnant woman allegedly pushed to her death from a hill in Edinburgh had agreed abuse code words with her daughter, a court has heard.
Yasmin Javed said she believed her 31-year-old daughter Fawziyah was in a violent, coercive marriage.
She said she told her to text "I feel like cream cakes" if she felt in danger.
Kashif Anwar, 29, denies murdering his wife at Arthur's Seat in 2021.
Mrs Javed told the High Court in Edinburgh she was very worried about her daughter before she died.
She said she had promised to contact police on her behalf if she received the coded message.
Advocate depute Alex Prentice asked her why she had taken this measure and she replied: "Because of the abuse, violence, coercive control that was going on."
Mrs Javed said her daughter had told her she was contemplating leaving the relationship within a few months of marrying Mr Anwar.
The court heard that the couple, who married in 2020, had checked into the Residence Inn in Edinburgh for a four-night stay on 1 September 2021.
Mr Anwar is accused of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner towards Ms Javed at the hotel by repeatedly shouting at her.
The following day, he is alleged to have pushed his wife from height and caused her to fall at Arthur's Seat, sustaining such severe injuries that she and her unborn child both died.
A post-mortem examination carried out on Ms Javed gave her cause of death as complications from multiple injuries and a fall from height.
Mr Anwar has pleaded not guilty to both charges, which are alleged to have been aggravated by other abuse of Ms Javed, from Pudsey in West Yorkshire.
Fawziyah Javed died after falling from Arthur's Seat
Yasmin Javed, from Leeds in West Yorkshire, said her daughter was an employment law solicitor who was a "very outgoing, sociable girl".
She said she earned a good salary as a lawyer and was "very financially secure".
Mrs Javed said her daughter was looking forward to married life but had concerns that her future husband seemed possessive and hot-tempered.
She said on one occasion as they were on their way to get rings, Mr Anwar became "really, really angry" when he was told to put his seatbelt on.
She said he was shouting, swearing and screaming.
Mrs Javed said: "It was like an extreme overreaction at being told to put the seatbelt on."
She said Mr Anwar was later very apologetic and said he was stressed about exams.
'Controlling her'
Mr Prentice asked Mrs Javed if her daughter wanted to remain in the marriage and she replied: "Yes and no."
Asked what her concerns were, she said: "Obviously the accused was being abusive, controlling, manipulative. aggressive and violent towards her."
Mrs Javed said her daughter had told her that Mr Anwar had accessed her online bank account when she was sleeping and withdrew £12,000. He put it into his own account and told her he had stolen the money, she said.
She said: "Fawziyah said she was going to leave him because of his behaviour and it was a way of controlling her."
The court heard she had contacted a law firm seeking advice over a potential divorce.
Mrs Javed said her daughter was "going to end the marriage" after her trip to Scotland with her husband.
Woman's scream
The court also heard from a witness who had been on Arthur's Seat on the evening of Fawziyah Javed's fatal fall.
James Duncan, 25, said he had gone for a walk with his girlfriend when he heard a female scream, followed by a male scream.
He said the male was screaming "like in shock, but I was not able to catch words".
He had then seen a woman and a man, who he identified as Mr Anwar, approaching and was asked for help.
The man said his wife had fallen and wanted him to contact emergency services, so he made a 999 call.
Mr Duncan agreed the man seemed "very panicked".
He said the ground was slippy but the woman who had approached him managed to find the person who had fallen.
"The woman did find her and she said she is still breathing," he told the court.
A midwife from Leeds General Infirmary, Elizabeth Petty, also gave evidence, describing how she had spoken to Ms Javed about a conversation that had been overheard by another patient.
The patient had been concerned about a comment made to Ms Javed by a man who had visited her.
According to a police statement, the man had said: "If you died during childbirth that would be okay. I would be free."
Ms Petty said Ms Javed had identified Mr Anwar as the person who made the comment, and had appeared scared.
The trial continues.
- Published29 March 2023
