Yaser Said (65) was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of killing his two daughters in 2008. This was a case that made headlines at the time as honor killings weren’t covered heavily in North America. The most widely covered honor killing in the U.S prior to the deaths of Amina and Sarah was Palestina Isa’s death in 1989.
Yaser Said Sentenced to Life without Parole for the Death of Daughters Amina and Sarah Said in 2008
After Amina began dating another teen she’d met in taekwondo class that things became worse for the girls. At the end of December 2007—the week before the murder—Amina (18), Sarah, and their mother Patricia Owens fled Texas in fear of their lives.
It was later reported that Yaser had pulled a gun on Amina and threatened her life and that he had physically and sexually abused his daughters for years.
Situated in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the three had been bombarded with calls from Yaser’s family to return. With her mother’s death anniversary coming up on December 31, Owens wanted to return to Texas to lay flowers on her grave. She was eventually convinced to return with Amina and Sarah.
Amina opted not to return which caused an issue between her and her mother. Eventually, she would return with her mother and sister to Irving, Texas. On January 1, 2008, Yaser claimed to be taking the sisters out for lunch and that he wanted to talk to them alone, which is why Patricia wasn’t with them.
Yaser Goes on the Run
Later that day, Sarah Said (17) called 911 saying that their father had shot her. Prior to authorities finding them, a worker contacted 911 about the girls being unresponsive inside a taxi.
After searching for the girls, the police found them deceased in a hotel parking lot. Yaser Said had shot the two girls and was now on the run. He would be added to the FBI Top 10 fugitives list in 2014 with a reward of $100,000.
He was almost captured in August 2017 when someone said that they saw a person who matched Yaser’s description associating with their complex’s maintenance worker—Yaser’s son.
Yaser was eventually captured in August 2020 and charged with the murder of Amina and Sarah. His son Islam and brother Yassein were charged with harboring a fugitive. Islam received ten years in prison in April 2021 while Yassein was given twelve years that June.
The sentence for Yaser Said was handed down on August 9, 2022 with a conviction of capital murder with no possibility of parole. Patricia Owens read her victim impact statement:
“I’m not scared of you anymore. You took my life. You took my family. All in one day. You will never break me down again. You are a prisoner. You are a murderer. You are the devil.”
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