UK court convicts British Pakistani family who chemically tortured bride and left her in vegetative state

A UK court convicted a British Pakistani family on Monday of causing or allowing newly married Pakistani woman, Ambreen Fatima, to suffer serious physical harm.

In a distressing incident, another harrowing case of domestic violence unfolded as Ambreen Fatima was left in a vegetative state for three days by her in-laws, as revealed by the UK prosecution.

Residing in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, the convicted family faced accusations of torturing their daughter-in-law.

Asgar Sheikh, aged 30, along with his father Khalid Sheikh, aged 55, mother Shabnam Sheikh, aged 53, and sister Shagufa Sheikh, aged 29, were convicted after evidence revealed that they permitted Ms Ambreen to remain unconscious for three days before seeking medical assistance. Consequently, she had been in a vegetative state for eight years.

As trial began in October this year, the court proceedings revealed that Ambreen moved to the UK after entering an arranged marriage with Mr Asgar in 2018, however, as strife and conflicts emerged in the family after a few months of marriage, she was socially isolated. 

After over 10 hours of trial, Ambreen’s husband, mother-in-law, father-in-law, and her sister-in-law were found guilty by the jury at Leeds Crown Court. With the exception of her brother-in-law, who was acquitted of charges related to causing or allowing her to suffer serious physical harm.

The jury heard that one of Ms. Ambreen’s in-laws made a call to the ambulance service around 1:12 am on August 1, 2015, mentioning that “her sister-in-law couldn’t breathe properly.” 

The ambulance arrived at 1:31 am, and paramedics were visited her sister-in-law’s bedroom, where Ms. Sheikh lay unconscious

Later, when the victim underwent medical treatment and a CT scan, doctors discovered a “severe” burn to her lower back likely to have been caused by a caustic substance.

The burns occurred five to seven days before  Ms Ambreen was admitted to the hospital.

The sentencing for the family will take place at a later date.