Leeds man found guilty of murdering pregnant wife by pushing her off hill in Edinburgh
Kashif Anwar, 29, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison
Last updated 6th Apr 2023
Anwar denied the charge but after a week-long trial a jury found him guilty of murdering Fawziyah Javed, 31, in September 2021 by pushing her from Arthur's Seat, causing her multiple blunt force injuries and ultimately her death, and that of her unborn child.
Ms Javed, who was around 17 weeks pregnant when she was pushed, used her dying words to reveal it was her abusive husband who caused her to fall around 50ft down the hillside.
The couple had travelled to Edinburgh in September 2021 on what Anwar, 29, said was a ‘mini-moon’.
He claimed Fawziyah, who was from Pudsey, slipped and fell in an accident on the hillside.
Daniyah Rafique, 24, managed to reach to the dying employment lawyer on the side of the landmark in the Scottish capital, where she was told: "Don't let my husband near me, he pushed me."
The court heard Pc Rhiannon Clutton, 35, was told by Ms Javed, her husband pushed her because she "told him I wanted to end (the marriage)".
At the High Court in Edinburgh, prosecutors were also able to show Anwar had been abusing Fawziyah for months prior to the trip, controlling and threatening her as well as subjecting her to violence.
Fawziyah had logged reports with West Yorkshire Police in interviews which were captured by officers’ body-worn cameras – and played to the jury by the Crown.
The 31-year-old woman recounted how Anwar held a pillow over her face and punched it repeatedly. In another incident, she was left bleeding and unconscious after struggling with him.
He's been jailed for 20 years.