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Slain men had dreams of better lives

The two men worked every day to send money back to their families in India and Pakistan.

By ALEX LEARY
Published December 9, 2005

ST. PETERSBURG - They worked seven days a week in pursuit of a common goal, to better their lives and support family abroad.

Ikbalhusen Kurban A. Vakil, 52, resisted even the most prosaic luxury, like dinner at a restaurant, to save money for his wife and two children in India. Steadily, he built a dowry for his daughter, set to be married in the summer.

Ali Asghar, 35, sent money back to Pakistan and used what was left to pay down student loans from school in Canada.

They worked at a jewelry kiosk at Tyrone Square Mall. "They were not here to fool around," said Muhammad Farooqui, a friend who also works at a mall kiosk. "They knew America is the land of opportunity. The harder you work, the easier the goal becomes."

This week, that dream came to a horrific end when, police say, Vakil and Asghar were murdered in the apartment they shared near the mall. Their bodies were found by a co-worker on Wednesday.

Farooqui was arranging Thursday to have the bodies flown to India and Pakistan for proper burial. He said fellow mall workers were stunned by the news, unable to comprehend who would want to hurt the men.

Vakil had been in the country for about three years and came to St. Petersburg from Atlanta. He worked in jewelry there as well. A devout Muslim, he prayed five times a day. Asghar, he said, studied computer engineering in Toronto and heard about the job in St. Petersburg from a friend.

They came to live together through their employer, who paid part of the rent at Brandywine Apartments, Farooqui said.

Police continued the investigation Thursday and offered few new details other than the murders did not appear random and that the men died of "upper body trauma."

"The best witness we have in this investigation is the crime scene and all the forensic evidence it is providing to us," police spokesman Bill Proffitt said.

"For that reason, we're not discussing what we're finding inside. We don't want to taint the investigative process."

Investigators have talked with numerous people who may have known or come in contact with the men and are trying to understand their daily routine.

"We're casting a broad net," Proffitt said.

Police ask anyone with information about the case to call Detective Glen Henry at 727-551-3058.

Alex Leary can be reached at 893-8472 or leary@sptimes.com

[Last modified December 9, 2005, 01:18:14]