A 22-year-old man who murdered a mother and her two children by lighting a raging fire at their Bradford home at dead of night was today facing life behind bars.

Asjid Mahmood was found guilty by a jury at Bradford Crown Court of heartlessly and deliberately ending the lives of Iram Shah, her daughter Alina, ten, and son, Aman, eight.

His brother, Arshed Mahmood, 18, was convicted of the manslaughter of the family who perished when Asjid Mahmood used petrol to burn their home in Hendford Drive, Pollard Park, Bradford, shortly after midnight on July 6 last year.

Neighbours battled to save the trapped children who died from breathing in fire fumes as the fierce blaze took hold.

Their mother leapt from an upstairs window with her clothing in flames. She died six days later from severe burns. The brothers stood impassively in the dock as the verdicts were announced at 4.15pm yesterday.

Both had denied murder but Asjid Mahmood had pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

They will be sentenced in Bradford on February 11 after a probation service report is prepared on Arshed Mahmood.

Andrew Stubbs QC, for the Crown, said victim personal statements by Mrs Shah’s family would be handed to the court.

The brothers were remanded back into custody by the trial judge, Mr Justice Coulson, who paid tribute to the “extreme dignity” of members of Mrs Shah’s family. They had sat in court throughout the trial as harrowing evidence unfolded.

Mr Justice Coulson also commended West Yorkshire Police, saying: “The detail and scope of the police investigation in this case was admirable.”

Vengeful hatred towards the children’s father, Zaheer Shah, 32, drove Asjid Mahmood to recruit his brother to help him set fire to the house, the jury had heard.

Asjid Mahmood was consumed with rage after being stuck with a big loan on a Seat Leon FR he and Mr Shah had bought to rent out. The flashy white car had fallen into the hands of a local “gangster” while Asjid Mahmood sunk deeper into debt, the jury had been told.

He could not afford to buy his nephews a birthday present and had resorted to stealing cash from the family takeaway business, Barkerend Fisheries. He blamed Mr Shah for ruining his life and said he wanted “to torture and kill him”.

On the night of the murders, Asjid Mahmood took fish and chip paper from one of his family’s shops and his brother bought petrol.

They drove to Iram Shah’s home, where Mr Shah was staying in the spare room. He was out when Asjid Mahmood ignited paper soaked in petrol by the back door. It was engulfed in flames when Mrs Shah’s brother, Mohsan Rasa, who was in the living room, heard the smoke alarm.

He and many neighbours made brave attempts to rescue the children.

Firefighters carried Aman out down a ladder. He died soon afterwards in hospital. Alina’s body was recovered from a bedroom.

A statement released by the Shah family said: “Aman, Alina and Iram brought only joy and happiness to anyone they came into contact with. Their lives were brutally cut short. They will never be forgotten by anyone who had the pleasure of knowing them.

“Now that justice has been served, we can only begin to try to replace our hurt with fond memories of the children and their mother.

“We would also like to express our greatest gratitude to the West Yorkshire Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, who worked long and hard to ensure that the individuals responsible were held accountable for the deaths of our loved ones.”