Man extradited from Pakistan to Britain, charged over police murder

Piran Ditta Khan is set to appear in court on Thursday, the CPS said in a statement

A man has been extradited from Pakistan to Britain and formally charged in connection with the 2005 murder of a British police constable, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said on Wednesday.

Sharon Beshenivsky, 38, died after being shot when trying to stop a gang robbing a travel agent in Bradford, northern England.

Piran Ditta Khan, 74, was taken into custody after arriving in Britain and is set to appear in court on Thursday, the CPS said in a statement.

"Since Piran Ditta Khan was arrested in Pakistan in 2020, our specialist prosecutors have been working closely with our Pakistani partners to complete the legal process in the country so that he could be extradited back to England to face the allegations from almost 20 years ago," said Joanne Jakymec, chief crown prosecutor for the CPS.

The CPS first authorised charges against Khan in 2006, including, murder, robbery, two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon. An extradition warrant was submitted in the same year.

In 2009, Mustaf Jama was jailed for life after being found guilty of Beshenivsky's murder. Five other defendants were convicted in 2006 for their part in the robbery and killing.