I just want answers. I just want to know why and for the wait to end.

“It’s never something that leaves your mind, it’s the first thing I think about when I wake up.

“That night still haunts me and it always will. You just feel so helpless.”

Those are the words of Dr Abdul Shakoor, the sole survivor of a fire which claimed the lives of six members of his family in Harlow in October 2012.

It’s been 13 years since the devastating fire, in Barn Mead, and detectives within our Serious Crime Directorate remain committed to securing justice for Dr Shakoor.

Dr Shakoor lost his wife, 44-year-old Dr Sabah Usmani, and five children – daughters Hira, 12, and Maheen, three, and sons Sohaib, 11, Muneeb, nine and Rayyan, six.

The family were asleep at their terraced home at 1.40am on 15 October 2012 when the fire took hold of the downstairs of the property. A silver Ford Focus was set alight at the same time in close proximity to the house fire.

The home was quickly engulfed by flames and smoke.

Desperate to raise the alarm and get help for his family, Dr Shakoor was able to jump from an upstairs window. But tragically the fire took hold and Dr Shakoor’s wife and children did not survive.

The home was quickly engulfed by flames and smoke.

Our murder investigation, called Operation Shakespeare, has been running for 13 years.

It remains unsolved but we remain determined to bring those responsible for the fire to justice.

The extensive investigation has seen more than 70 police officers and staff focus on the incident and the circumstances around it, with about 500 people coming forward to give witness statements and almost 2,000 items being examined.

Detective Chief Inspector Louise Metcalfe, from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said:

“This is still very much a live investigation and we remain committed to establishing who is responsible for this catastrophic loss of life.
“Dr Shakoor deserves answers, he deserves justice.
“Over the past 13 years we have regularly reviewed the evidence in this case to identify any new lines of enquiry.
“We remain confident that there are people out there who know what happened that night, who could come forward and should in all good conscience come forward.
“Dr Shakoor is living a life sentence of torment, losing his entire family in a single night, while the person responsible remains at large.
“We are as determined as we’ve ever been to change that.
“If you know something which could help us, please come forward.”

Detectives investigating the fatal fire continue to appeal to the community for any information which could help bring those responsible to justice.

If you have any information, please get in contact with us. You can contact us through our Digital 101 service via our website, or you can call 101.

Alternatively if you’d like to make an anonymous report, contact independent charity Crimestoppers by visiting their website or by calling 0800 555 111.