Charge Upgraded Against Father Accused Of Killing Own Daughter

It was a crime that shocked the entire city. And the charge against the man accused was also surprising. But now a father alleged to have strangled his own daughter to death is facing the maximum charge allowed under the law: first degree murder.

The case, which dates back to December 10, 2007, is unforgettable. It started when a man called 911 to report he'd just murdered his 16-year-old child. It's believed Aqsa Parvez was balking at wearing the traditional hijab, a covering worn by Muslim women.

Friends claim the teen was desperately trying to pull away from the strict tenets of her devout family and lived in fear of her father. "Every single time, we'd get off the school bus she would always want me to walk her halfway home because she was paranoid her dad or brother would follow her home," remembered her  friend Ashley Garbutt shortly after he crime.

"She used to walk the rest of the way home. I stopped for a little while and after, I kept continuing because I understood it was a serious matter."

The teen would often leave her Mississauga home wearing the garment, only to change into more Western style clothes at school. It became a frequent source of friction at home that eventually sent the girl packing. She was staying with a friend the day of the murder but had come back to get some of her things.

She never returned. She was discovered strangled in the family's home and though paramedics revived her, she succumbed later in hospital.

Muhammad Parvez, the girl's 57-year-old father, had originally been charged with second degree murder, but the accusation was upgraded on Tuesday.

The victim's brother, 26-year-old Waqas Parvez, was also charged with obstructing police. His case remains before the courts.

The murder made headlines around the world and sparked debates centering on the hijab, religion, the rights of women and the constant clash between traditions and a more modern day world.

The father will be back in court in early July.

Tradition and terror believed behind murder

LOL @ Jinx

It is tough for a kid/teenager raised in a Western society to conform to their traditional/religious ways. Some parents are so damn encerrados en sus ideas y no piensan en las experiencias de sus hijos. Un joven que no a crecido en el mismo ambiente de sus padres obviamente va a tener diferentes ideales y diferentes metodos de vida.

To try and raise your kid with your religious beliefs and traditional values is expected from most parents - that's just part of your culture. Pero de ahi a llegar a casos extremos, de violencia y hasta de muerte esta ya muy pasado de la linea. Como padres tambien tenemos que aprender a respetar los puntos de vista/valores de nuestros hijos aunque no estemos de acuerdo con ellos.

SSSEEEEEEEEE - Un correaso o chancletada latina is nothing in comparison to what some other cultures do!

I heard about this, this morning on the radio. I was shocked.... I can't believe sHiat like this keeps happening.....

All I can say is I hope he pays for what he did....

it's nothing new that many youth of Middle Eastern decent want to be more Westernized... When i was living in Brampton I saw this alot. Many of the girls in my high schoolw ould arrive to school wearing burqas and wat not, they would change in school to regular casual clothing, then before they got on the school bus they'd change back to their rligious clothing so their parents wouldnt say anythin to them...

muslim law is very strict, and i would say about 75% of muslim families in Canada follow the Quran to the tee... somethin like this happened couple years back in Brampton, the girl died after being hit over the head by her older brother with a cricket bat....

very sad to hear of another case..

Teen Dies After Being Choked In Her Own Home
Tuesday December 11, 2007
CityNews.ca Staff

She wanted to be more Western.

He wanted her to be more traditional.

And that clash of cultures may have been what led a father to allegedly choke and kill his daughter on Monday. Police are saying very little about what happened in a home on normally quiet Longhorn Trail in the Eglinton and Hurontario area of Mississauga. But the friends of 16-year-old Aqsa Parvez claim she was desperately trying to pull away from the strict traditions of her devout Muslim family and lived in fear of her father.

"Every single time, we'd get off the school bus she would always want me to walk her halfway home because she was paranoid her dad or brother would follow her home," remembers Ashley Garbutt. "She used to walk the rest of the way home. I stopped for a little while and after, I kept continuing because I understood it was a serious matter. And then after, I was expecting her to come to school on Monday and everything was going to be fine."

But as students at Applewood Heights Secondary School discovered during when the announcement of their friends' death came over the PA system on Tuesday, nothing was.

Aqsa passed away in hospital overnight. The sad story began around 8am the day before when a man called police to report he'd murdered his daughter. Authorities found the girl clinging to life. She'd reportedly been choked into unconsciousness. Her father, identified as 57-year-old cab driver Muhammad Parvez, was taken into custody at the scene.

Her friends tell of a troubled family life, with the teen refusing to wear the traditional head covering hijab, and preferring more Western-style clothing.

They say she'd moved out and was staying with a friend, and may have gone back to get her things when the confrontation began. "She's kind of rebellious a bit," confirms classmate Heather Bottecher. "She's supposed to wear the hijab. But she doesn't usually wear it. And she usually wears short sleeves when you're supposed to wear long sleeves. And she wears, like, low cut shirts and stuff like that."

"We noticed a drastic change in her appearance," another friend named Shianne Phillips recalls. "Like, she used to dress religiously. Now she's dressing in, like, more causal clothing, like other people."

There are reports the teen would wear the special garb to school then change when she got there to fool her father.

The entire family - seven adults and three children - was questioned by police after the crime and cops claim they found enough evidence to charge the victim's brother, 26-year-old Waqas Parvez, with obstructing justice.

Grief counsellors were at the school on Tuesday to try and help shocked students cope with the loss.