Noor Mukadam murder case: Zahir Jaffer sentenced to death by Pakistan court

A Pakistani court on Thursday sentenced a US national of Pakistani origin to death for raping and beheading the daughter of a former diplomat, crimes that sparked outrage across the South Asian nation.

The body of Noor Mukadam, 27, was found in Islamabad on July 20. Police charged Zahir Jaffer with a murder that has dominated headlines ever since.

A sessions court in Pakistan's capital Islamabad sentenced Zahir to death for the murder.

Additional Sessions Judge Ata Rabbani announced the verdict which was reserved on Tuesday following months of hearings, according to local media reports.

Zahir's parents, Zakir Jaffer andAsmat Adamjee, and other suspects were present in the court when the verdict was announced.

The maximum sentence was 'necessary', the victim’s father said after sentencing.

“I have been saying that this is not just my daughter’s case, it is a case for all the daughters of my country,” he said.

Investigators say Jaffer lured Mukadam, a friend and daughter of Pakistan’s former envoy to South Korea, to his home, held her there for two days and then brutally murdered her.

Two of Jaffer’s employees, Iftikhar and Jameel, were jailed for 10 years each on charges of abetting in the crime.

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All other suspects, including Zahir's parents and TherapyWorks employees, were acquitted, Dawn.com reported.

(with inputs from Dawn.com)

• Pakistan