EAST HAM MAN SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR WIFE’S MURDER
A man convicted of killing his wife after she announced plans to leave him has been sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday night.Abdul Kadir, aged 49 and father of two children, was found guilty of strangling Mumtahina Jannat, 29, following years of abuse, threats, and violence within their marriage described as filled with mistrust and aggression.
Ms Jannat, who had ceased her college studies and driving lessons under her husband's insistence, had complained of being physically assaulted with kicks and a belt.
Her decision to break free after enjoying a period of independence while Kadir was abroad in Bangladesh for two months was seen as her fatal mistake, the Old Bailey court heard.
When she failed to return to their home, Kadir threatened her on the phone, saying, "I will not let you go easily.
I will show you.
I will finish you off." Two weeks later, Ms Jannat was discovered dead at their residence in Kempton Road, East Ham, with a scarf tightly wrapped around her neck.
Kadir claimed he had accidentally strangled his wife during an attempt to prevent her from self-harming, but the jury quickly found him guilty, deliberating less than an hour.
Prosecutor Zoe Johnson described Kadir as having been "habitually violent" towards his wife for many years, adding that her desire to leave was the motive for her killing.
"Her effort to escape unwittingly signed her own death warrant," she told the court.
On the day of her death, witnesses saw Mumtahina dropping her youngest child at school at 8:50 am and returning home.
About an hour later, Kadir was seen leaving the house and calling his brother, confessing he was in trouble and recounting a fight involving both of them choking each other until she collapsed.
Later, Kadir called emergency services from Kempton Road at 12:41 pm.
His brother found Mumtahina lying on the floor, with a kitchen knife nearby, and paramedics attended but could not save her.
Kadir told police that they fought upstairs, and he had slapped her after she picked up a knife; according to his account, they both grabbed each other's necks, resulting in her fall.
A police officer overheard his brother remarking, "I told you should have swapped your wife because something bad would happen." The post-mortem confirmed that her neck injuries were consistent with manual compression and suggested pressure had been applied for at least 20 seconds.
Both Kadir and Mumtahina, originally from Bangladesh, married in 2000 before moving to the UK.
Neighbors had previously seen signs of abuse, including Kadir hitting her and her reporting injuries, such as a broken wrist, belt marks, and a kick in the stomach after childbirth.
At one point, Kadir warned neighbors, saying, "Watch one day what I will do." In 2005, Mumtahina left him and took her children to a refuge, but she later returned for her children’s sake.
Kadir attended an anger management course in 2007, but abusive behavior persisted, especially as he resented her efforts to become more independent through education and driving.
Her giving up her studies and driving lessons was attributed to his controlling influence.
Kadir denied the murder charge and was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 17 years before being eligible for parole.
