Family Members Convicted of Allowing Sabia's Death

05/02/2008

Four close relatives of the man who murdered his wife Sabia Rani, have been convicted of failing to protect her and thereby allowing her death.

New Domestic Violence Provisions Bring Groundbreaking Conviction in West Yorkshire

Shazad Khan (25) of Oakwood, Leeds was found guilty of his wife's murder in January last year. Now Khan's mother, Phullan Bibi (52), two of his sisters, Uzma Khan (23), and Nazia Naureen (28) and Nazia's husband Majid Hussain (28) have all been found guilty of failing to do anything to help protect vulnerable Sabia, from her death at the hands of her husband.

At the time of conviction West Yorkshire Police and the CPS had already taken the first steps towards charging these defendants, a course supported in court by the trial Judge, His Honour Norman Jones QC.

All four relatives of Shazad Khan and Sabia Rani were today convicted of Causing or Allowing the Death of a Vulnerable Adult contrary to section 5 (1) and (7) of the Domestic Violence Crime and Victims Act 2004. Today's convictions are among the first occasions when this legislation has been used after the death of an adult.

Sabia was just 19 years old when she died at the family home in Leeds in May 2006. Sabia had only been married for a matter of months before repeated, savage beatings from her husband caused her death.

The jury today agreed with the prosecutions case, that the defendants must have known what was happening to Sabia; must have known that Sabia was suffering terrible pain from her injuries and was at risk of further harm at the hands of her husband; and they did nothing at all to help her.

Malcolm Taylor of CPS West Yorkshire's Complex Casework Unit said:

"Sabia Rani was the victim of horrific violence at the hands of her husband whilst her family, as the jury found, chose to do nothing to help her.

"This is the first case in West Yorkshire and one of the very first cases in the whole of England and Wales where the provisions of the Domestic Violence Crime and Victims Act 2004 have been used after the death of a 'vulnerable adult'.

"The message must be that if families or other people with a duty to look after those who need protection deliberately choose not to do so, their neglect will not be ignored by the law enforcement agencies, and prosecution will follow."

Ends

Notes to Editors

1. Sabia married Shazad Khan in December 2002 and joined him at the family home in Oakwood Grange at the start of 2006. She had previously lived in a rural village in Pakistan and spoke almost no English.

2. To request an interview with Malcolm Taylor (Special Casework Lawyer) or Neil Franklin (Chief Crown Prosecutor), please contact Cheryl Ford, Area Communications Manager on 0113 2902839