The wife of a ‘kind and devoted’ father murdered by his neighbour in a row about a communal door said the family are yet to be rehoused and are still forced to use the flat where the deadly knife attack unfolded.
Father-of-two Raish Ahmed, 50, was repeatedly stabbed by Daniel Whybrow, 46, in an argument over a communal door being left open at their block in Hartington Road, Canning Town.
A 16-year-old boy was also injured in the incident last October.
Witnesses described how the argument flared with Mr Ahmed and a friend asking Whybrow to close the communal door to keep the block safe. But the killer refused and kept it open as he worked in his bike.
As the clash escalated Whybrow grabbed a knife and launched his fatal attack repeatedly stabbing Mr Ahmed and injuring a teenager who stepped in to shield him.
He died two days later on October 7. Whybrow was jailed for life, serviving a minimum sentence of 24 years, last Wednesday at Snaresbrook Crown Court.
After the sentence, Mr Ahmed’s wife Jannatul has said the family are ‘broken’ and feel let down by the authorities in London.
The family still sleep in temporary accommodation one year on from the murder.
However they still have to return to the crime scene to get their mail, cook and wash clothes.
In a tribute to her husband, who was an Uber driver and was her carer, Jannatul told Metro: ‘We are broken as a family. There aren’t really words for this kind of loss, but I will try, because my husband deserves to be spoken about.
‘He was not just my husband — he was the father of my children, and the centre of our lives. He worked every single day, without complaint, to give us stability. He was like a bird that kept us wrapped in the shelter of his wings to keep us warm and safe and now we are under the shelter of God.
‘He was kind. He was devoted. He was rare. If I told you the lengths he went to for us, you probably wouldn’t believe me, because men like him don’t really exist anymore. He gave everything he had, and in the end, he gave even his life.’
She said that the family were struggling with Newham Council failing to find her and her two children a permanent home. She said having to return to the scene where her husband was repeatedly stabbed is putting more misery on the grieving family.
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Her eldest son is studying for his A levels and the three of them are sharing a one bedroom hotel room in east London.
It is their third stint in temporary accommodation.
She said the family, originally from Bangladesh, had been ‘failed by London’. She said Whybrow had been reported to the authorities over his antisocial behaviour before.
The court was told of a previous incident, in July, where Whybrow called police after a row with another family in the road, but found him being abusive towards them.
She said: ‘I need people to hear: my husband did not just die because of a knife. He died because of neglect.
‘The police, who ignored warnings. The council, who turned their back on communities.’
The family now have to return to the flat they lived in for four years before the day Whybrow ‘robbed the family of their future’
The victim’s wife said: ‘What about our future it is being taken away. The council has put us in three different temporary accommodation places. We live in one room with no place to cook or clean clothes or receive mail.
‘I have to go back to our old home to cook and bring the food to our room. We can’t wash our clothes. It’s traumatising to go back but I have to do it. I have no choice. My son is studying for his A levels for a good future but it’s a struggle we have no space. It’s unacceptable the way we have been treated. Every time I go back I imagine the scene on the day my husband was stabbed and the bloodshed. No family should be put through this.’
She added: ‘I am disabled and one permanent home the council offered was nowhere near public transport. The other was exactly the same layout as our old place with the communal door. It was almost identical it would just leave us terrified again. We ask Newham Council to find us a place we feel let down.’
A Newham Council spokesperson said: ‘We take all complaints extremely seriously and are committed to providing clear guidance and support to our residents to help them resolve any issues they face.
‘The tragic loss of Mr Ahmed has undoubtedly caused deep distress and concern within the community, and our thoughts are with everyone affected.
‘We want to reassure the family and the wider community that we will continue providing support with compassion, care, and the utmost respect to those affected.
‘Once again, we offer our heartfelt condolences to Mr Ahmed’s family and friends. Our deepest sympathies are with them as they continue to navigate this unimaginable loss.’
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