'Kind, compassionate and caring': The family of Saqib Hussain pay tribute

Following today's verdicts, the family of Saqib Hussain have paid the following tribute.

Saqib was a much-loved young man. He was kind, compassionate, caring and sensible. My family has been shattered by this senseless act and we are still struggling to come to terms with the enormity of our loss. I do not feel that we have received justice as we have now got a life sentence.

Saqib Hussain

We are grateful that the courts saw through all the lies attributed to my son Saqib. Thank God the jury saw through it and gave the verdicts our children deserve.

Saqib’s death has brought so much sadness, not just to his family, but to the many people that knew him. I would like to thank those that have, and continue to provide overwhelming support to our family. A special thank you must also go to the police and CPS, our Family Liaison Officers, our victim support officer, our local schools and the local mosque.

I never imagined that I would have to bury one of my children; that I would spend every waking moment suddenly expecting him to come back and tell me everything is ok; endlessly searching for his face whenever I am in public even though I know it is impossible.

This grief of losing Saqib has further been compounded by having to relive the horror of my son’s death over and over again in court. My family and I would like to thank Leicestershire Police greatly for their diligence, thoroughness and painstaking hard work in ensuring that those responsible for Saqib’s death did not evade justice.

We have hope and confidence that Saqib has found eternal rest with Our Lord, and that we will get to be with him again when we pass. We also pray that no family will have to go through our experience.