KILLERS CAGED
Furious families of men murdered by TikTok influencer Mahek Bukhari, 24, & mum Ansreen say they ‘haven’t got justice’
THE families of two men killed by a TikTok influencer and her mother have vented their fury claiming they 'haven't got justice'.
Mahek Bukhari, 23, and her mum Ansreen Bukhari, 45, plotted to "silence" Saqib Hussain by luring him with cash.
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Saqib and his friend Hashim Ijazuddin both died after their Skoda Fabia was rammed off the road by hired thugs.
Mahek Bukhari, Ansreen Bukhari, Rekan Karwan and Raees Jamal were jailed for life yesterday.
Now the families of the two victims have hit out at the murderers and claimed they have been denied justice.
Mr Hussain's family said: " Saqib was a much-loved young man. He was kind, compassionate, caring and sensible. My family has been shattered by this senseless act and we are still struggling to come to terms with the enormity of our loss.
"I do not feel that we have received justice as we have now got a life sentence.
"We are grateful that the courts saw through all the lies attributed to my son Saqib. Thank God the jury saw through it and gave the verdicts our children deserve.
"Saqib’s death has brought so much sadness, not just to his family, but to the many people that knew him. I would like to thank those that have, and continue to provide overwhelming support to our family.
"A special thank you must also go to the police and CPS, our Family Liaison Officers, our victim support officer, our local schools and the local mosque.
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"I never imagined that I would have to bury one of my children; that I would spend every waking moment suddenly expecting him to come back and tell me everything is ok; endlessly searching for his face whenever I am in public even though I know it is impossible.
"This grief of losing Saqib has further been compounded by having to relive the horror of my son’s death over and over again in court.
"My family and I would like to thank Leicestershire Police greatly for their diligence, thoroughness and painstaking hard work in ensuring that those responsible for Saqib’s death did not evade justice.
"We have hope and confidence that Saqib has found eternal rest with Our Lord, and that we will get to be with him again when we pass. We also pray that no family will have to go through our experience.
The family of the family of Mohammed Hashim Ijazuddin said: "The day we found out Hashim had died, our world came crashing down. His death has changed everything.
"Everyone who knew Hashim, loved him. His death is not just a massive loss to our family but also to our whole community.
"Hashim was a cheeky young man who was always smiling, a handsome man who was beautiful both on the inside and out. He would do anything for anyone, was very caring and had a very kind heart.
"Hashim would always put others first and wouldn’t hesitate to help others if they needed it. On that tragic day, he was simply helping his friend and this resulted in his death.
"It has been extremely painful not only losing Hashim at such a young age but also in the circumstances in which we lost him.
"We will always be extremely proud of Hashim. Whatever he would have done in life, we know he would have excelled in it. Hashim was and will always be our superstar and our one-in-a-million.
"The family would like to thank the police, the CPS and the prosecuting counsel and everyone else who supported and prayed for Hashim and for us."
Saqib had been in a relationship with married Ansreen for about three years and "appeared to be in love" with her.
By January 2022, Ansreen was trying to end the relationship but "increasingly obsessive" Saqib would not accept it was over.
As a result, he "took to attempting to blackmail Ansreen" by threatening to , the court heard.
The mother and daughter then plotted to "silence" Saqib by luring him in and offering to pay him back the money for date nights.
In the minutes leading up to the crash Saqib made a harrowing 999 call.
He said: "I'm being followed by two vehicles and they're trying to block me in. I can't get to a police station -
I need help right now.
"There's guys following me. They've got balaclavas on.
"They're trying to ram me off the road. They're trying to kill me - I'm going to die."
After giving his name to the operator, Saqib then begs: "They're hitting into the back of the car very fast.
"Please, I'm begging you, I'm going to die."
He can then be heard screaming before the clip cuts off.
Moments later, the Skoda Fabia the friends were travelling in smashed into a tree on a central reservation and "split in two".
Mahek Bukhari, Ansreen Bukhari, Rekan Karwan and Raees Jamal were sentenced to life. Mahek was sentenced to a minimum of 31 years, 8 months while Jamal was jailed for 36 years.
Ansreen Bukhari was jailed for a minimum of 26 years and nine months. Raees Jamal, 23, was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 36 years and 45 days, with 30 days on remand to be deducted.
Passing sentence at Leicester Crown Court, Judge Timothy Spencer KC pointed to the negative impact of social media in the background to the murders.
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Addressing Mahek Bukhari he said: "Your tawdry fame through your career as an influencer has made you utterly self-obsessed with a wholly unjustified sense of entitlement and no apparent awareness of the impact you have on others, oblivious to the damage you do.
"That your solution to your mother's problems was to engage some of your male followers to beat up Saqib Hussain speaks volumes of your warped values and maybe also of the false world of influencing that you so enthusiastically espoused."
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