A man extradited from Pakistan has been formally charged in connection with the murder of Police Constable Sharon Beshenivsky in Bradford on 18 November 2005.

Piran Ditta Khan has been charged with murder, robbery, two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon.

The decision to charge has been made in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.

Piran Ditta Khan, 74, was extradited from Pakistan on Tuesday, 12 April 2023 and after arriving in the UK was taken into custody at a West Yorkshire police station, where he was formally charged.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised charges in 2006 against Mr Khan with six offences including, murder, robbery, two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon. The CPS submitted an extradition warrant in 2006. 

He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, 13 April 2023.

The extradition was the result of collaborative work between the CPS, Pakistani authorities, West Yorkshire Police and the National Crime Agency.

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.”

(Source: CPS)

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