Saiqa Akhter is in jail for choking the children

[Aslan]

IRVING — Irving police said Saiqa Akhter will be arraigned on capital murder charges Wednesday morning in connection with Monday's assault on her two children that left one of them dead and another clinging to life.

Investigators said Akhter, 30, called 911 around 5 p.m. Monday telling police she had done something terrible to her five-year-old son and his two-year-old sister.

According to a search warrant and arrest affidavit, officers arrived to find the children in a bedroom; both were blue and not breathing.

Akhter was exiting their apartment at the Wind Tree complex but was taken into custody immediately.

Child Protective Services is now involved in the case. In May 2009, someone called the agency to complain that the Akhter's son Zain had been left alone.

"The parents admitted that they had left their older child home sleeping while they took the little girl to the emergency room for some severe respiratory problems," said CPS spokeswoman Marissa Gonzales.

CPS said they worked with the family for two months, getting them help. Case workers saw no reason to continue visits since there were no physical signs of abuse.

"We definitely went to start out the investigation, talked to the parents," Gonzales said. "They were adamant that it would not happen again, and that they knew it was dangerous to leave a child so young home alone, but that they had been so scared for their toddler that they just hadn't been thinking clearly."

The biggest question now is, why did this happen? Saiqa Akhter didn't show any apparent signs that something was wrong.

"There was absolutely no concern about physical abuse at the time," Gonzales said about the agency's 2009 investigation. "The children were in good condition aside from their medical issues, and the home was neat and tidy. No one that we spoke to had any concerns about the parents caring for their children. It had only been that one incident."

The children's uncle, Wasimul Haque, told The Dallas Morning News that the Akhter's son was autistic, and the mother was depressed. He said she also didn't like the one-bedroom apartment that the family had recently moved into.

"Since last one month, she was totally not herself," Haque said. "She was not mentally present and she was somewhere, her mind was somewhere."

Two-year-old Faryaal Akhter remained in critical condition at Children's Medical Center Dallas on Tuesday.

There is a word used for type of crime: filicide. Sadly, Texas has had some of the most notorious and most publicized cases.

Daisja Weaver was killed last June. Police said her parents were both involved in her murder. The infant's body was never recovered from Lewisville Lake, where her parents said they had dumped her.

Andrea Yates remains in prison, convicted of killing her five children in 2001.

On average, about 48 children are killed by their parents each year.

http://www.wfaa.com/news/crime/Irvin...-98874064.html

[Hellsbells]

2nd choked child dies; Mom faces murder charges

IRVING, Texas

•

The Dallas County Medical Examiners Office says the second of two children who police believe were strangled by their mother has died.

The office says Faryaal Akhter of Irving died Tuesday night at a children’s hospital where she had been on life support since the Monday night attack

http://sltrib.com/sltrib/home/499667...ryaal.html.csp

[Whisper]

Woman calls 911, says she strangled autistic children
CNN) -- An Irving, Texas, woman told a 911 operator that she strangled her two young children Monday because they were autistic, according to a recording of the call.
Saiqa Akhter, 30, has been charged with with a single count of capital murder in the deaths of her 2-year-old daughter and 5-year-old son, police said.
Dallas County Police spokeswoman Jamille Bradfield said the single count covered a child under 5 and would probably be changed either to include multiple victims or to add a count.
[...]
A woman who identified herself as Akhter called police Monday evening and said she first tried to kill her children with bathroom cleaner, but they would not drink it. She told the 911 operator that she then strangled them with a wire and that they were on her bed.
[...]
On the tape, the woman tells the operator, "I killed them. I killed both of them. I killed my both kids. ... They are not doing anything. They are just blue. They are not taking any breaths. Their heart is not beating."
The operator asks her what happened.
"First, I tried to give them bathroom cleaner. I put in their mouth, but they don't drink it. I want them to drink it. They don't drink it. ... I grabbed their neck ... and they are no more," she says on the tape.
[...]
"They are autistic. I don't want my kids to be autistic," she is heard saying in an even tone.
The operator then asks her what she is feeling, and she says "nothing."
[...]
Spokeswoman Marissa Gonzales said the parents admitted leaving their son asleep at home while they rushed their daughter to the emergency room with respiratory problems. The boy was not harmed.
[...]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/07/22/...led/index.html

Bond was set at $1 million for Saiqa Akhter in the strangulation deaths of her children, ages 2 and 5.

[Whisper]

Irving Father Standing By Wife Who Murdered Kids
The Irving man who buried both of his children this week vows to stand by his wife who is charged with their murder.
"I lost my daughter. I lost my son. I can't afford to lose my wife," says Rashid Akhter, the husband of Saiqa Akhter.
Saiqa Akhter is charged with two counts of Capital Murder, a Child under the age of six.
"I understand my children are gone. They can't come back, but my wife, she's a caring mom. I want her back in my life so I can feel like I'm not alone in this world" says Mr. Akhter.
[...]
Rashid Akhter says his two-year-old daughter was not autistic but that his son was. Mr. Akhter says Zain was showing signs of improvement. "He says the words like 'see you papa.'"
[...]
"In the last three or four months, she was seeing something, something was controlling her."
Mr. Akhter says when his son was two years old; his wife was disturbed by a comment made by a neighbor. "One of her friends, she said, your son is not speaking? My daughter's speaking. Your son is not." Mr. Akhter says after that his wife stopped socializing with friends and family members.
Dallas Attorney Richard Franklin has been appointed to represent Mrs. Akhter. "We have to demonstrate that she didn't know the difference between right and wrong and that's a pretty tough hurdle," says Franklin. "Really and truly a lot of insane people know the different between right and wrong. They just can't control themselves," he says.

Mr. Akhter says his wife cooked Sambosa, a type of cookie, for her children just hours before their death. "She was very caring. She didn't work. She wanted to spend her whole time with the children, so she wanted to make sure the children are secure" he says.
[...]

http://cbs11tv.com/local/rashid.akht...2.1822437.html

[donegaveup]

They're secure now aren't they, what with being dead and all. Good God. What is that woman doing looking right into the camera like that? Doesn't know the meaning of the word shame? She was ashamed enough of her children to stop socializing but not too ashamed to look away when accused of killing them. Ignorant slag. She should be pushed down and run over.