Robbery mastermind behind Sharon Beshenivsky’s killing jailed for life

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The mastermind behind a botched armed robbery which saw a police officer gunned down in the street has been jailed for life.

PC Sharon Beshenivsky was shot dead on her daughter’s fourth birthday after she and a colleague disrupted a raid on Universal Express travel agencies in Bradford, West Yorkshire, in November 2005.

She and PC Teresa Milburn, who were both unarmed, were shot at point blank range after four men had just committed the robbery.

At the time of her death, she had only been an officer for nine months and had “no chance” of escaping the gunman.

After nearly two decades, gang leader Piran Ditta Khan became the last of seven men involved in the robbery to be sentenced in April this year.

He was arrested in Pakistan after spending 15 years on the run and extradited back to the UK to face trial. The 75-year-old was found guilty of two counts of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon. He pleaded guilty to robbery.

On Friday, he was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court to life with a minimum term of 40 years for the murder of Pc Beshenivsky.

The court heard that although Khan did not leave the safety of a guard car throughout the raid, he played a “pivotal” role in planning it and knew that loaded weapons would be used.

Prosecutors said this made him guilty of murdering Pc Beshenivsky “as surely as if he had pulled the trigger himself”.

During the trial, jurors heard that Khan was the only one in the group who knew Universal Express and had used it in the past to send money to the family.

Khan told jurors he did not know a robbery was about to take place or that guns would be taken.

He claimed he was owed £12,000 by the owner of Universal Express and that debt collector Hassan Razzaq, who was later convicted of manslaughter over Pc Beshenivsky’s death, offered to help him recover his money . Prosecutors said there was no evidence of that.

CCTV cameras had captured the horrifying moment the two police officers were gunned down in the street after her killer began “shooting indiscriminately” as she fled.

The court heard Pc Beshenivsky’s injury was immediately fatal. PC Milburn, who activated his personal radio and called for help while coughing up blood, survived his injuries after treatment in hospital.

Sentencing, Judge Hilliard said: “You intended the weapons to be used to kill if necessary to do so” and added he was part of a “planned enterprise” and shared “criminal intent”.

PC Beshenivksy’s family said the conviction of her killer marked the end of a winding 19-year journey to find “truth and justice” – but no punishment could make up for her death.

In a statement, they said: “November 2005 was the start of a nearly 19-year journey. A journey in search of truth and justice for Sharon who was not only a police officer but a loving mother, wife, daughter, sister and friend to many.

“That was the day our family and those close to Sharon’s lives changed forever. So is Sharon’s friend and colleague Teresa and her family.

“No prison sentence can ever make up for Sharon’s life and our loss, but we will move forward knowing justice has been served.”