Man charged with murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky
West Yorkshire Police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have extradited a man from Pakistan wanted in connection with the murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky in Bradford in 2005.
PC Beshenivsky, 38, had been an officer for nine months with West Yorkshire Police when she was fatally shot on November 8, 2005.
Piran Ditta Khan, 74, was arrested by Pakistani Police in January 2020.
He was brought back to a police station in West Yorkshire and formally charged with six offences on Wednesday (April 12).
He has been charged with murder, robbery, two counts of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon.
Khan has been remanded into custody and was due to appear before Westminster magistrates on Thursday (April 13).
West Yorkshire Police said it was grateful to the National Crime Agency, the Pakistani Authorities and the CPS for “their invaluable assistance in this matter”.
The CPS submitted an extradition warrant in 2006.
Joanne Jakymec, Chief Crown Prosecutor for the CPS, said: “A suspect wanted in connection with the murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky in Bradford in 2005 has been extradited to the UK from Pakistan thanks to the continued hard work of prosecutors in the CPS’s Extradition and International Units.
“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.”
Craig Nicholls, chair of West Yorkshire Police Federation, said: “The murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky and the attempted murder of her colleague PC Teresa Milburn sent a shockwave not only through West Yorkshire but throughout the world. We still mourn the loss of Sharon. She will never be forgotten.”
He added: “The persistence to bring to justice all those involved in the murder of PC Beshenivsky has never wavered. I know my colleagues within West Yorkshire will now be watching closely the wheels of justice turning in this case.
“As the case is now active, we will be making no further comment at this time.”