MURDERED MUSLIM’S FAMILY: WE FEAR FOR OUR LIVES
New agony in wake of shopkeeper’s brutal killing
THE family of a Muslim shopkeeper who was murdered after posting an online Easter message yesterday revealed they feared for their lives following the brutal attack.
Asad Shah was stabbed to death at his store on Thursday evening, hours after posting: ‘Good Friday and a very happy Easter, especially to my beloved Christian nation.’
Police arrested a 32-year-old Muslim man on Friday and officers later confirmed they were investigating the incident as ‘religiously prejudiced’. He has since been charged.
Mr Shah, 40, and his family, originally from Pakistan, are members of the Ahmadiyya Islamic sect, which preaches ‘love for all, hatred for none’. But in some parts of the world it has faced persecution from more hardline Muslim factions.
In their first interview since the tragedy, close family members of Mr Shah revealed they are now ‘scared for our lives’.
Speaking exclusively to The Scottish Mail on Sunday last night on the condition their
names are not published for fear of retribution, they paid a moving tribute to a ‘much loved’ son, brother, uncle and friend who was known for bringing people of all religions together.
At the family home in Glasgow, Mr Shah’s extended family gathered to grieve – including his brother who had flown in from the US and his sister who had come from the South of England.
Mr Shah’s elderly parents could not bring themselves to speak – and his widow fought back tears to describe her husband as ‘a kind man who was always smiling’.
She said: ‘He looked after me and his parents and was loved by many, many people.
‘I saw him only a few hours before he died. I keep thinking he is going to walk back through the front door. I am heartbroken.’
The eldest of seven siblings, Mr Shah moved to Glasgow with his family in the 1990s from Pakistan. They opened Shah’s Newsagents and Convenience Store in Shawlands on the South Side.
Mr Shah was ‘in love’ with his adopted homeland and even referred to Shawlands as ‘Shahlands’, his younger brother said. He added: ‘The people of Glasgow and Shawlands were so welcoming and we became part of the community. Asad loved Glasgow. I now live in the US and used to ask if he wanted to move over and he would say he couldn’t leave “his Glasgow”, that it was his home.
‘He loved being in the shop and speaking to everyone. He knew all his customers by name and sometimes they would just come in for a chat.
‘He was a calm and patient man and did not mind where people were from or what religion they were. He liked everyone. He would give people cards for Christmas and for Easter as he knew it was important to them.
‘I opened up my Facebook this morning and was blown away by the support and tributes from the local community. It shows how much he was liked.
‘People have even been paying tribute to him in Canada and America. He has moved many people. He was the eldest and looked after us all and he looked after our mother and father, too. He loved us all very much and told us that.
‘We are still coming to terms with what happened and we have to be careful now about our own security.
‘We are scared for our lives. The police have told us to be careful about what we say and we do not want to give our names to protect our security.’
Another of Mr Shah’s younger brothers witnessed the murder and was injured as he tried to drag his brother to safety. The family said he was still too upset to talk about what happened.
His younger sister, who had travelled from England, said: ‘Asad was a humble, gentle man – he did not deserve this. He was also a very social man, always laughing. A real gentleman. He embraced Scotland and Glasgow. He was proud to be a Glaswegian and so loyal to the city. He knew so many people.
‘I haven’t been able to bring myself to visit the floral tributes near his shop as it is still too raw, but I want to thank everyone for their support. It will never bring him back but it is nice to know how much support he has got.’
Mr Shah was found with serious injuries outside his shop on Minard Road at 9.05pm on Thursday. Paramedics gave him CPR, but he could not be saved.
The area was cordoned off and it is understood a dark-coloured taxi was examined by forensics officers before being taken away from the scene.
The stabbing took place hours after Mr Shah posted a goodwill message on his Facebook page ahead of Easter. He said: ‘Good Friday and a very happy Easter, especially to my beloved Christian nation.
‘Let’s follow the real footsteps of beloved holy Jesus Christ and get the real success in both worlds.’
The Shah family worship at the Baitur Rahman Mosque in Glasgow, the base for the Ahmadiyya Muslim community of Scotland.
Last night the mosque’s imam Dawood Ahmad Querishi said: ‘The murder of Asad Shah was completely brutal, horrific and unjustified. Such murders are a cause of extreme grief and sadness and our prayers are with the victim and his family.
‘It is up to the Government to root out all forms of extremism. The Ahmadiyya Muslim community has been speaking about the importance of this for many years. We are waiting for the results of the police investigation before we make any comments on the motive for the attack. We do not want to cause more division.’
Another member of the Ahmadiyya community said: ‘We promote peace and respect the values of the country we live in. We would fight for that country as it is the place that feeds us. We face persecution around the world as some Muslims do not consider us to be Muslims.’
A spokesman for Glasgow Central Mosque, the largest in Scotland, said: ‘We were shocked and saddened to learn of the murder of Asad Shah, a respected and popular member of the local community.
‘The mosque strongly condemns the murder of Mr Shah and sends condolences to his family and friends. This type of criminal behaviour is abhorrent and unacceptable and the mosque stands shoulder to shoulder with all communities in order to eradicate this kind of intolerance from our society.’
Around 200 people gathered beside Mr Shah’s shop to lay flowers and cards yesterday. The vigil was organised by Aleesa Malik, 17, and Nabah Younis, 16.
Miss Younis said: ‘We organised the vigil because he was such a lovely man. He took an interest in everyone’s life. He had so much respect for everybody, no matter what colour or race or faith.’
Local Andrew Cassells said: ‘He was such a friendly man. He always made the effort to ask how everyone was and he would always have a smile on his face.’
Salah Beltagui, director of the Muslim Council of Scotland, came to pay his respects. He said: ‘It is a sad feeling and a shock. The loss of any human life, whether it is Muslim or not Muslim, is the same, it is a human life. We hope that the community will stay calm and learn the facts, then we will know if there is some- thing we can do or something we can learn from this.’
It is understood the 32-year-old suspect was detained by police and taken to hospital after the attack – although he was discharged from hospital yesterday.
Police Scotland yesterday confirmed the man remained in custody. A spokesman said: ‘A 32-year-old man is due to appear in court on Tuesday.’