Abusive Wolverhampton husband who gunned down mother-in-law after wife left him

An abusive husband has been convicted of gunning down his mother-in-law on her doorstep in a revenge killing after his wife left him.

Tariq Rana, from Wolverhampton

Tariq Rana, 31, shot Ghulam Asia at her house in Pakistan in retaliation after 28-year-old Ayesha Riaz split up with him.

He travelled from his home in Leicester Street, Whitmore Reans, to track down and murder her relatives.

Rana went to Mrs Asia's home in Lahore with an unnamed accomplice, dressed as a delivery man.

The pair rang the doorbell and when Mrs Asia, 49, went to the gate to sign for the delivery, Rana blasted her.

She died hours later from internal injuries caused by two gunshot wounds.

He then made a series of telephone calls to Ms Riaz's brothers threatening to "kill them all" unless she came back to him, according to police.

Rana will be sentenced on Friday, July 31 at the Old Bailey after he was convicted of murder at Woolwich Crown Court.

He claimed during the trial that he had nothing to do with the shooting and was at Mrs Asia's home with a "bodyguard" to try and reconcile with his wife.

An argument ensued, during which two gunshots were fired by either the bodyguard or a member of Mrs Asia's own family, he told the jury.

Rana was prosecuted in the UK under the Offences against the Person Act 1861 for the attack on 27 July 2013.

The Act gives authority for a UK national to stand trial for a murder committed overseas.

Detective Chief Inspector Tim Duffield, of the Met's Homicide and Major Crime Command, described Rana as a "violent and controlling man" who murdered his mother-in-law "in the most callous and brutal way".

"This was not a spontaneous event, but rather a revenge-driven premeditated attack aimed at causing the maximum distress and suffering to his estranged wife and her family," he said.

"It is also important to recognise the considerable assistance we received from the Pakistani authorities, without which justice for Mrs Asia's family would not have been possible.

"My deepest sympathies go out to Mrs Asia's family who have shown great dignity and courage throughout."

Rana's sister Nargus Ahmed, 33, and brother-in-law Muhammed Adeel, 35, were both acquitted of assisting an offender following the four-week trial.