Rookie cop's killers went on vodka-fuelled brothel trip before murder, jury told
The gang behind a robbery that left rookie PC Sharon Beshenivsky dead went on an alcohol-fuelled night out at a brothel hours before the fatal attack, a court has heard.
Leeds Crown Court heard that a total of seven men were involved in the robbery of Universal Express Travel in Bradford in 2005 that ended in PC Beshenivsky being fatally wounded. All have been convicted barring Mr Khan, who denies charges of murder and possessing various weapons. A witness told how the gang drank "champagne, vodka and coca cola" at a safe house before visiting a brothel on the eve of the fatal robbery, it has been claimed. Some were given £80 to pay for entertainment and sex, it was claimed.
"After visiting the brothel the men all returned to 99 Harehills Lane, Leeds, where they slept in various rooms," Prosecutor Robert Smith KC told the court. The jury heard hours later they were seen to be “elated” and shouted ‘Let’s go do it’ when they were told by alleged "organiser" Piran Ditta Khan - nicknamed "uncle" - they could make £100,000 in the raid.
Sharon Beshenivsky was killed during the raid on Universal Express Travel (PA)A witness at the ‘safe house’, Francois Baron, the jury were told, saw gang members with weapons on the eve of the raid. He allegedly saw one of them produce a pistol which appeared to have a silencer on it and a black machine gun. Hassan Razzaq, who was described as the defendant's 'driver', warned Francois Baron never to speak about the guns.
"He told him that his life would be in danger,” the prosecutor said. The court heard how Baron heard one of the gang ask the defendant: “Uncle is it safe? The defendant replied; ‘Yes, it is safe, genuine'. Khan was asked 'how much can we get?' and the defendant replied ‘minimum £50,000 maximum target £100,000’."
Man in 30s dies after being stabbed in park sparking police probe
Sharon Beshenivsky (SWNS)
The scene where PC Beshenivsky was shot dead (PA)Mr Smith added: “The group were elated, there were shouts of ‘let's go do it’ and they were all seen by Francois Baron to be very confident.” Before the raid, it was claimed Khan allegedly met the gang in the 'safe house', which was normally used for asylum seeker accommodation. Khan's mobile phone movements were shown to the jury on the second day of his trial at Leeds crown court.
Data from the phone revealed he had travelled to Yorkshire from his home in Ilford in the days before the robbery on November 18 2005. The court heard he met six men in an address at Harehills Lane in Leeds, which was being refurbished but normally used to house asylum seekers.
Khan, now 75, allegedly fled to Pakistan 18 years ago, two months after the raid on Universal Express Travel in Bradford. PC Beshenivsky, 38, was shot dead at “point blank range” as the robbers fled. The officer, who had been serving as an officer for West Yorkshire Police for just nine months, was shot along with her colleague Teresa Milburn, then 37, who survived but was seriously injured.
The van carrying defendants (PA)It has been claimed Khan was parked in a Mercedes SLK nearby at a "safe distance" as the robbery took place. He was finally extradited last April to face trial for murder and possession of various weapons with intent to endanger life, which he denies.
The prosecutor has told the jury Khan’s role was “pivotal” in the bungled raid. Robert Smith KC: “The sequence of events establishes that the defendant’s mobile telephone left the Ilford area of the early afternoon of that Sunday 13th November and was in the vicinity of the premises of Universal Express Bradford later that afternoon.”
“He went to West Yorkshire and back on November 13th and 14th. Between the 16th and the early hours of the 18th of November (when the robbery took place), six men and the defendant at various times and in stages began to assemble at 99 Harehills Lane in order to prepare for the robbery. This property was intended to provide accommodation for asylum seekers and was being renovated.”
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
