Iqbal reportedly strangled his wife, Naziat Khan, in their London house with a scarf in August 2001, even though Iqbal was 61 years old at the time of the incident.
When his wife sought a divorce 20 years ago, Iqbal denied it and murdered her. Foreign media claimed on Wednesday that Zafar Iqbal, 61, reportedly strangled Naziat Khan, 38, with a scarf at their London home in August 2001.
Iqbal appeared via a video connection from HMP Wormwood Scrubs in a grey prison tracksuit to deny killing his wife. It took 20 years time to extradite Iqbal to the United Kingdom after fleeing to Pakistan following his alleged involvement in the murder.
Improving bilateral ties between Pakistan and the UK has led to the extradition of one of its citizens, Iqbal, to the UK. On Monday, August 20, 2001, soon after 1 p.m., the defendant shot and murdered his wife,” Prosecutor Anthony Orchard said. “He killed her by strangulation.” This happened in Norbury, southwest London.
In the wake of the murder of his wife, he departed the United Kingdom for Pakistan. The next day, the police were informed, and the body of the deceased was discovered at the address. Strangulation was found during a post-mortem investigation.
In 2005, a warrant was issued for the defendant’s arrest after he escaped to Pakistan in violation of his bail terms. After that, inquiries were conducted with Pakistani authorities due to the lack of an official extradition pact with them, and an extradition warrant was obtained, which was ultimately enforced in Pakistan in December 2017.
According to our knowledge, the defendant has been fighting extradition since he was sent to a Pakistani jail. He was remanded in custody in Pakistan as he opposed extradition. On September 14th of this year, he was extradited to the United Kingdom and detained upon arrival. The Old Bailey will hear Iqbal’s case on December 5th, this year.
