The cousin of Mary Jane Mustafa has said that her family “still don’t know the truth” about what happened to her even after killer Zahid Younis was jailed for murder.
Ayse Hussein attended every day of the trial which resulted in 36-year-old Younis being jailed for life with a minimum of 38 years for murdering Mary Jane, also known as Mihrican and Jan, as well as Henriett Szucs, a Hungarian national who had been sleeping rough in Ilford.
The bodies of both women were found in a freezer in Younis’ flat in Vandome Close, Custom House, last year. Both had sustained serious injuries including rib fractures.
Southwark Crown Court heard that Younis had a history of violence against women spanning nearly two decades, with previous partners among those giving evidence in his trial.
“It was hard,” she said. “Hearing the victims and what they’d got to say, hearing what he did to them.
“Thinking, ‘did he do that to her as well?’
“We’ll just never know what he did. How did she meet him?
“We’ve got justice but we still don’t know the truth.”
Mary Jane, from Canning Town, was last seen in May 2018 and despite her family reporting her missing and launching an extensive bid to find her, it was almost a year until police discovered her body.
“It’s been two years of non-stop emotion, from looking for her to the funeral to court,” Ayse said.
“The jury bit was the worst part [of court]. The waiting game was really hard.
“Two days, we just sat on the sofas all day. We wanted to be next to [the courtroom] so we were there to run in.”
Ayse, along with other relatives including Mary Jane’s sister Mel, was in court to hear the verdict and sentence delivered.
“We know he’s locked away for 38 years so for the next 38 years, girls are safe,” she said.
“It’s scary knowing that there’s monsters out there that can do so much damage to women.
“We’ve had weeks of hearing what he did to my cousin, to Henriett.”
She warned women to “be careful” of men like Younis, adding: “If people start getting violent and aggressive you need to get away.
“Especially in Henriett’s situation, it started off all lovey dovey and got worse and worse.”
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