LONDON: A man in the UK has been found guilty of murdering his 20-year-old niece after she refused a forced marriage, the BBC reported on Tuesday.
Bradford Crown Court found Mohammed Taroos Khan guilty of murdering Somaiya Begum, who was the subject of a Forced Marriage Protection Order at the time of her death, after her father tried to force her to marry a cousin in Pakistan “by threat of violence” when she was 16 years old.
The court heard that the Leeds Beckett University student had been living with another uncle after her parents were served with the order, the BBC reported.
In July 2022, 53-year-old Khan killed Begum before dumping her body in wasteland in Bradford. Her body was discovered, wrapped in a rug, 11 days after she went missing.
Khan, who denied murdering Begum, admitted perverting the course of justice by disposing of her body and attempting to destroy her phone.
During the trial, jurors were shown CCTV footage of Khan pulling his niece’s body from his car and placing it on waste ground, the BBC reported. The video shows Khan parking the vehicle before pulling a long and light object from the rear of the car.
A 10-centimeter metal spike embedded in Begum’s back and penetrating her lung was discovered during a post-mortem examination.
Due to decomposition, a Home Office forensic pathologist told the court that she was unable to determine the cause of Begum’s death, the BBC reported.
Khan was found guilty of murder during his trial and is set to be sentenced on Wednesday.
