The leader of a gang involved in a fatal armed robbery that resulted in the killing of police officer Sharon Beshenivsky passed away in prison due to lung cancer less than a year after being convicted, according to an inquest.
Piran Ditta Khan orchestrated the armed robbery at a travel agency in Bradford where PC Beshenivsky was fatally shot in 2005. Khan, who had been on the run for nearly 15 years, was sentenced in May 2024 to a minimum of 40 years in prison, marking the final conviction of the gang members. He died at the age of 76 on February 21 at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire.
Assistant coroner John Hobson initiated the inquest into Khan’s death, revealing that he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in June 2024 and was undergoing chemotherapy. Khan was hospitalized on February 3 with symptoms resembling a stroke, and medical assessments showed that the cancer had spread to his brain.
Following an eight-day hospital stay, Khan was transferred to the prison’s medical unit for palliative care until his passing on February 21. The cause of death was determined to be bronchial pneumonia linked to cancer of the right lung. The inquest was briefly adjourned, with plans for a comprehensive hearing at a later date.
Sharon Beshenivsky was tragically killed on her daughter’s fourth birthday during the robbery at Universal Express travel agents in Bradford. Khan had fled to Pakistan following the incident and managed to evade capture until his arrest in 2020.
In April 2024, Khan was convicted of murdering PC Beshenivsky and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 40 years. His familiarity with the travel agency and previous use of its services to send money to Pakistan were highlighted during the trial. Khan had fled to Pakistan shortly after the robbery and remained there until his arrest and extradition back to the UK.
In his sentencing, the judge emphasized that Khan would spend the rest of his life behind bars due to the severity of his crimes. Paul Beshenivsky, Sharon’s husband, expressed the profound loss caused by Khan’s actions, stating that her death was a brutal and senseless tragedy.
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