Pregnant woman in dock for murdering father-in-law

A woman, who is eight months into her pregnancy, was booked in connection with the murder of her father-in-law.

A woman, who is eight months into her pregnancy, was booked in connection with the murder of her father-in-law.

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The woman’s friend — Riyazul Ahmed, who is married — was arrested.

Sources said the woman was enraged at her father-in-law’s objection to her relationship with Ahmed.

Mohamed Haneef, 45, was murdered by three contract killers, whom his daughter-in-law had specifically hired for the job, police said.

Haneef was found dead, with his throat slit, in the fields near National Highway-24 on February 12. Investigations by the police have revealed that the victim’s daughter-in-law had extra-marital relations with Ahmed before her marriage.

"Her friend got her married to a man aged around 21 years and continued having relations with the woman. He also frequented her house, to which her father-in-law objected," senior superintendent of police (SSP) Raghubir Lal said.

Angered over her father-in-law's objections, the woman hatched a plan with Ahmed to hire three killers, who had previously worked as butchers, for R30,000 and paid them after the murder, police said.

"She forced me to hire these men to hire her father-in-law and also paid R30,000 for the job,"Ahmed said after his arrest.

"The woman planned the killings. She is the prime-accused in the murder but we have not arrested her yet as she is in the last stages of her pregnancy. She will be arrested later,” SSP Lal said.

The three killers, along with the woman's friend, were arrested on Thursday on charges of murder, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence, police said.