THE family of murdered Preston jewellers Mohammed and Bilquis Karim had been the target of villains FOUR times before Friday's horrific double stabbing at their Church Street shop.

The most recent attack came just four weeks before Friday's murder, which police are still trying to establish a motive for.

The middle-aged couple were discovered in the back room of their shop by their two sons, Shabir, 27, and Shafiq, 29, shortly after 3.30pm, when the couple had failed to pick their grandchildren from a Blackburn primary school.

Just four weeks ago, Shafiq was attacked by armed men as he made a delivery to a Burnley market stall.

Six months ago, Shabir was tied up and beaten when thieves raided the family's Blackburn shop, making off with £400,000 worth of goods.

In 1993, the murdered couple were dragged from their beds and beaten at gunpoint as raiders searched for a rare jewel the couple were alleged to own. Three men were sentenced to six years in prison. The couple's firm was renowned locally for specialising in exquisite and expensive jewellery.

And in April 1984, a gang bound and gagged the five Karim children - Shabir, then 12, his sister Sophia, 11, Salma, nine, Sabina, 16, and Shafiq, 14 - during another raid on the family home when they lived in the Daisyfield area. The crooks made off with £95,000 of gold bullion. Six men were jailed for the offence.

Their deaths have sent shockwaves through both Preston's Asian community and the Little Harwood district of Blackburn, where the wealthy couple lived.

Det Supt Michael Arnold, from Preston Police, said: "We have 50 people working on this case and so far we have received a good response from the general public.

"We are looking at a range of areas which may indicate a motive, including drugs and the possibility of it being a racial attack."

Following a detailed inventory at the shop on Monday, the family have confirmed £30,000 worth of jewellery is missing from the store.

An appeal has also been put out on Radio Lancashire in Urdu in the hope someone from the Asian community may know something. Bilquis spoke little English.

Mr Arnold said his team were trying to track down Mr Karim's business associates, many of who may not realise he is dead because he is known in the trade as Tony, after his shop.

Mr Arnold added: "I am concerned that more people who had been to the shop on that day have not come forward.

"We are also studying CCTV camera footage from the shop and the street but it is a painstaking process."

At their terraced house in Whalley Old Road, Blackburn, the family are still trying to find a reason for the killing.

Mohammed and Bilquis had two sons and three daughters, one of who lives in the family's native Pakistan and flew back into the country this week, as well as four grandchildren.

The family has put up a substantial reward for anyone who gives the police information which leads to the conviction of the killers of the Karims.

Speaking on Tuesday, Shabir (pictured right) said: "You only need to take a walk down this community and they will all say the same.

"My dad never had a cross word with anyone in years and years, and my mum, she was like an angel."

He added: "We honestly feel that it was an armed robbery. Two men have come in behaving as potential customers.

"My dad would not have struggled. He would not have jeopardised his life or my mother's life with a struggle.

"He would have just said take what you want and get out."

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