Jan 2, 2008 6:03 pm US/Central
Friends: Murdered Teens Were Afraid Of Their Dad
LEWISVILLE (CBS 11 News) ―
Friends and classmates are in shock after two teenage sisters are murdered, police say, by their own father.
Just after 5 p.m. Wednesday Lewisville police and Denton County Sheriff's SWAT officers began clearing the scene in the 1000 block of Lakeland Drive.
Law enforcement officials spent the earlier part of the day going through the home of wanted capital murder suspect Yaser Abbdel Said.
An hours long vigil was triggered after someone thought they'd seen movement inside the house. Officials eventually learned that no one was inside, but an armored car was called to the scene and nearly a dozen canisters of tear gas were shot inside the residence.
Sharp shooters also sat nearby, keeping an eye out for Said. The 50-year-old taxi driver is accused of murdering his two daughters Tuesday night and leaving their bodies in his cab at an Irving hotel.
Sisters, Amina, 18, and Sarah, 17, were each shot to death. Friends of the girls say their father was Egyptian and critical of popular American lifestyles. ""He was really strict about guy relationships and talking to guys, as well as the things she wears," said Kathleen Wong, a friend of the dead teenagers. "I'm definitely 100% sure that it was her dad that killed her."
The family's neighbor, however, seemed to be more taken back by the news. "My truck was in the shop, and I got him to take me down and get it out of the shop. He seemed like a pretty nice guy. His son would come by all the time and borrow tools from me," said Ross Chancellor.
Wong says the girl's father was verbally abusive and that Sarah, especially, lived in fear. "She's always told me that she was always so scared of her dad," says Wong. "Even at school if a teacher joked around like, 'I'm gonna tell your parents about this', she would like totally flip out and start crying like, 'please don't tell'."
While Irving police won't speculate on motive they agree the family had domestic issues. "We do consider this man armed and dangerous; he does have a capital murder warrant out for him," said David Tull, Irving Police Department.
Police say Said remains at large and urge anyone who knows him or his whereabouts to contact police.
For safety reasons, police are holding Said's wife and young adult son at an undisclosed location.
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