Noor Mukadam’s case: Zahir Jaffer sentenced to death penalty

ISLAMABAD: A local court in Islamabad has sentenced Zahir Jaffer to death for the murder of Noor Mukadam after a long-drawn trial of over four months.

The death penalty has been imposed on Zahir Jaffer, the main suspect in the Noor Mukadam case, while his employees Iftikhar and Jan Mohammad have been condemned to ten years in prison.

Zahir’s mother Asmat Adamjee, father Zakir Jaffer and cook Jamil have been acquitted.

The verdict had been reserved after the completion of arguments by the prosecution and defense earlier this week.

Following multiple twists and deferrals, the trial court had finally reached a decision in the high-profile case after the counsel representing Noor’s father completed his arguments at Tuesday’s hearing.

The trial of the gruesome murder continued for four months and eight days.

Noor’s father hope for justice

Speaking to the media ahead of the verdict’s announcement, Shaukat had said that everyone is hopeful that Noor will get justice.

“The murderer and his accomplices will get punishment and rule of law will prevail,” he said.

“I pray that the decision of Noor Mukadam murder case is based on justice.”

Background

A 27-year-old woman, Noor Mukadam, was murdered on July 20 within the jurisdiction of the Kohsar police station in Islamabad’s F-7 area. She was daughter of Pakistan’s former ambassador to South Korea and Kazakhstan Shaukat Mukadam.

The trial officially kicked off on October 20, 2021, when Zahir, was formally charged for the crime by an Islamabad court. Besides him, two of the family’s employees — Jamil and Jan Mohammad — were also indicted, along with Zahoor.

The trial comprised of 25 hearings in total, while Zahir tried to prove himself a mentally ill throughout the trial.