Husband who strangled his arranged wife to death at their Birmingham home in a row over Bangladeshi land deal

A deranged husband who his estranged wife by strangling her to death in a dispute over a piece of land has been jailed for life.

Mohammed Liaqat Ali, 37, throttled Lilima Akter Munny, 27, at their rented home on June 13 last year.

Ali moved to the UK in 1998 from Bangladesh before returning home to wed Lilima in 2004 in an arranged marriage.

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The pair moved to the UK in 2005, although their relationship quickly broke down when Ali became involved in a dispute over land in Bangladesh with his wife's mother

The pair moved to the UK in 2005, although their relationship quickly broke down when Ali became involved in a dispute over land in Bangladesh with his wife's mother.

The argument, which lasted for months, resulted in Ali stating he would kill his wife if the deeds were not changed to his name.

Ali eventually carried out his threats on the mother-of-two last summer, who was found by officers after being alerted by a family member when she failed to collect her children from school.

Police gained entry into the couples rented home in Birmingham in the early hours of June 14 to find her body at the foot of the stairs.

A post-mortem examination later found that she died from pressure to the neck.

Yesterday at Birmingham Crown Court, Ali was handed a life sentence and ordered to serve a minimum of 15 years behind bars.

After the murder, the court heard how Ali pretended to look for his wife when she didn't collect the children 

Judge Patrick Thomas QC said: 'The background to the killing of your wife involves a dispute, which you took deeply to heart, about the title to land you had bought in Bangladesh.

'I am satisfied that a significant part of your character is a stark inability to understand that anybody who differs from your views could possibly be right.

'You also have a very short fuse. I am satisfied that you have resorted on previous occasions to using violence against your wife in the course of disputes, mainly about money.'

He added that Ali squeezed his wife's neck for a 'significant amount of time'.

After the murder, the court heard how Ali pretended to look for his wife when she didn't collect the children.

Robert Price, prosecuting said: 'The victim's two children had been waiting at school to be collected on the day their mother died.

'Ali had played a "cool and calculated game" by pretending to look for Lilima.'

Christopher Hotten QC, defending, there had been no significant pre-planning and no weapon had been used.

Speaking after the case, Detective Sergeant Ranj Sangha, who led the investigation, said: 'I'm satisfied with today's hearing which will see Ali behind bars for a considerable amount of time.

'This was a tragic case where a long running argument over land in Bangladesh has resulted in Lilima losing her life.

'It was a violent attack against an innocent woman in her home that has left her family completely devastated by what happened.

'Lilima has left behind her two young daughters whose lives will never be the same following this terrible crime.

'I hope that today's verdict brings some closure to Lilima's family and they can now begin to come to terms with what happened.'