A 75-year-old Pakistani man has been found guilty of planning a robbery and murdering a British police officer
A 75-year-old Pakistani man has been found guilty of planning a robbery and murdering a British police officer
A 75-year-old Pakistani man has been convicted of planning an armed robbery and murder of a British police officer nearly 20 years ago. Piran Dutta Khan spent almost two decades in Pakistan trying to escape the law. Piran Dutta Khan was extradited from Pakistan to Britain last year, the last of the seven men involved in the robbery to face trial. He had previously confessed to the robbery but denied murdering the officer.
On Thursday, Leeds Crown Court also found Piran Dutta Khan guilty of two counts of possessing a weapon with intent to endanger the lives of others and two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon.
PC Beshenivsky, 38, was shot dead when he arrived at a travel agent’s office in the city center following a robbery complaint. That night was their youngest daughter’s fourth birthday. As he approached the entrance to the travel agent’s office with his colleague PC Teresa Milburn, three men emerged from inside and began shooting at the two officers. PC Beshinowski was shot at close range and fell on the pavement, while PC Milburn was seriously injured.
The man who was shot was one of three armed men who made off with around £5,400 in cash during a robbery at the same time. Six people were later arrested and convicted of murder and other charges, Pera Dutta Khan being the seventh and last person to stand trial.
Jurors at Leeds Crown Court were told that Piran Dutta Khan was the mastermind behind the robbery and played a crucial role in planning the robbery and giving instructions to others. Piran Dutta Khan told the court that when the theft was committed, he ate a sandwich while waiting in a car with Hasan Razak.
Later, Hasan Razak and his brother Faisal Razak were convicted of murder, robbery, and possession of arms. Raza-ul-Haq Aslam was sentenced for theft. Muzkir Shah and two brothers, Yusuf Jama and Mustafa Jama, who were carrying weapons in the Universal Express, were convicted of murder, robbery, and possession of firearms.
Leeds Crown Court was told how Piran Dutta Khan fled to Pakistan shortly after PC Beshinowski was killed and spent almost two decades in Pakistan avoiding the law. He evaded the law until he was arrested by the Pakistani authorities in 2020, but then he was arrested and handed over to the UK last year.
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