Gang ringleader jailed for life for murder of Bradford PC Sharon Beshenivsky

• Mr Justice Hillard passes sentence on Piran Ditta Khan

The mastermind of an armed robbery during which a police officer was shot dead will spend the rest of his life in prison after being jailed for her murder.

Piran Ditta Khan, now 75, fled the UK after PC Sharon Beshenivsky's death in Bradford in 2005.

He was extradited from Pakistan in April last year and was found guilty of murder following a trial at Leeds Crown Court last month.

Khan, who was 57 at the time of incident, was the last of seven men to face justice.

He was given a life sentence on Friday, with a minimum term of 40 years. The number of days he has spent in custody since his arrest will be deducted from the term.

Judge Mr Justice Hillard told him: "No sentence I pass can put right what you have done."

He added: "You will inevitably spend the rest of your life in custody."

PC Beshenivsky, a 38-year-old mother-of-three, was shot dead after responding to reports of a raid at Universal Express travel agents on Morley Street, Bradford, on 18 November 2005 – the day her daughter Lydia turned four.

Her colleague PC Teresa Milburn was also shot but survived.

Khan denied knowing about the robbery plot, or that weapons were going to be used.

He claimed an associate had merely offered to get back £12,000 owed to him by the owner of the travel agents.

But prosecutors said Khan played a "pivotal" role in planning the raid and gave instructions to the others.

The jury heard he remained in a lookout car during the robbery, but the prosecution said he was as guilty "as surely as if he had pulled the trigger himself".

Robert Smith KC, prosecuting, told the sentencing hearing the robbery involved "a substantial degree of unnecessary violence".

Mr Smith said: "The defendant was present, waiting nearby and was instrumental in giving instructions to enter the premises and carrying out the intended robbery.

"In doing so, he knew they would be carrying the weapons in question, loaded with ammunition and he shared the common intention with them to shoot any person who sought to obstruct them and get their arrest."

Between 2006 and 2009 six men were jailed for their parts in the events leading to PC Beshenivsky's death.

Khan evaded justice for more than 14 years before his arrest in January 2020.

As well as murder, he was convicted of two counts of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of having prohibited firearms.

He had previously pleaded guilty to robbery.

In a statement Sharon Beshenivsky's daughter, Lydia, said: "I have little to no memory of my mum and growing up I have had to hear of her friends and gamily talking about her and things she liked to do. She went to work that day and never came home. I often think she was a hero that day and paid the ultimate sacrifice.

"Since that day and throughout my life there has always been a void but as a result of the violence and callous actions you Piran Ditta Khan and associates you did that day, you robbed me of a future with my mum. Every birthday it is a reminder of that day. Recently it has been Mother's Day and my friends celebrated with their mums, and sadly I can't do that."

Paul Beshenivsky, Sharon's husband, said in a statement in March: "How can I ever put into words the impact losing Sharon has had on me and our family? The way we lost Sharon was the most brutal and callous way. She should have come home at the end of her shift to celebrate our daughter's fourth birthday. She never came home because of the actions of Piran Ditta Khan.

"If Piran Ditta Khan had not organised the robbery, Sharon would not have been shot dead. She was doing her duty as a police officer, a job she loved to do, and we are all very proud of her. The grief and upset we all suffered is unimaginable but we all had to try and continue."

'We once again pick up the pieces'

In a statement given by police outside court, PC Beshenivsky's family said: "November 2005 was the start of an almost 19-year journey. A journey seeking the truth and justice for Sharon, who was not just a police officer, but a loving mum, wife, daughter, sister, and a friend to many.

"Our journey seeking justice and closure of the judicial process is now at an end. This journey has and continues to be difficult for us all. Enduring several trials over the years has been hard, each one of them taking us back to the very beginning, which made us feel like we had lost Sharon all over again. And now we once again pick up the pieces of our lives and continue forward as Sharon would have wanted us all to do."

Assistant Chief Constable Patrick Twiggs, of West Yorkshire Police, said: "This is a day of mixed emotions. On the one hand we are pleased to get the final conviction in this case, but on the other hand we are sad as it has brought into sharp focus the completely unnecessary waste of life that day.

“For 18 years we have never given up on getting justice for Sharon and Teresa, and today their families have received that justice.

“Sharon was murdered in the line of duty, in what was a totally unnecessary act. Sharon was doing her job and protecting the public.

“The pain and anguish of what happened on that day and the profound sense of loss, will come flooding back to her family, friends, Police and the local community. It was a day we will never forget.

"West Yorkshire Police will continue to honour Sharon’s memory, we still mourn the loss, we still miss her, she will be forever in our thoughts."

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