The grandfather of a pregnant lawyer who was brutally murdered by her husband did not tell his family he had terminal cancer and died before her killer was jailed.
Fawziyah Javed, 31, was pushed to her death from Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh by her abusive husband, Kashif Anwar, 29, on September 2, 2021.
Abdul Latif, 70, was described by family members as their “leading investigator” as Fawziyah's relatives fought hard to get justice for the young woman.
Heartbreakingly, it has now emerged that Abdul was diagnosed with terminal cancer during the investigation and did not tell anyone about it because he didn't want to "divert attention" from her murder case.
The grandad kept quiet about his terminal diagnosis until 48 hours before he died on November 1.
Fawziyah’s uncle, Shahid Farouk, 53, said Abdul was present when his granddaughter’s body was identified on her birthday, September 4, 2021, and his death had been a “huge blow” to the family.
And he said it was “devastating” he was unable to get the “closure” he had sought when Anwar was jailed for 20 years for Fawziyah’s murder on Thursday.
He said: “He was like our leading investigating officer. He was with us all the way. But he sadly died from cancer. And the worst thing about it was that he kept it inside him.
“Doctors were telling him, ‘You must tell your family. You’ve not got long to live.’ They gave him a year, but sadly he went within a couple of months.
“When we went to identify Fawziyah on September 4, we should have been celebrating her birthday, not going to a mortuary to identify her body, and Fawziyah’s grandad went with us.
“The reason why he didn’t want to tell anybody was that he knew the family was going through a lot of grief with Fawziyah’s ongoing case, so he didn’t want to trouble us and divert us to his attention.
“It wasn’t until 48 hours, when his condition deteriorated a lot, that he actually told us. It’s a huge blow for us, losing Fawziyah’s grandfather, not having the closure of the case before he passed away."
Fawziyah was 17 weeks pregnant when she was murdered by her abusive husband Anwar.
He lured her on a trip to Scotland in what was described as a ‘mini-moon’ before pushing her to her death.
Anwar claimed Fawziyah slipped and fell in an accident on the hillside, but prosecutors and the jury were able to expose her husband's lies at a trial heard before the High Court in Edinburgh.
Witnesses who rushed to her aid after she fell from the cliff-face told the court that Fawziyah used her dying words to reveal it was her abusive husband who caused her to fall 50ft down the hillside.
Daniyah Rafique, 24, managed to reach the dying employment lawyer on the side of the landmark in the Scottish capital, where she was told: “Don’t let my husband near me, he pushed me.”
Shahid, paying tribute to the “god-gifted”, privately educated lawyer, said Anwar would have pulled off the “perfect murder” if it was not for her intervention.
The businessman said: “He was a jealous, controlling freak. He didn’t show any remorse at all for what he did, taking not only her life but her child’s life as well.
“I would have said this guy is a psychopath. It beggars belief. Who would do that? A woman who was educated, she bought him things, and it just wasn’t enough for him.
“God gave her that strength that she was alive when the police got there.
“But it was almost the perfect murder for him to get away with, had she not been alive, I don’t think there would be much evidence.
“What person not only kills his wife but his own child as well? He showed no remorse whatsoever and he was a coward.
“He depleted our trust. I remember him telling us, ‘I’ll look after her’. And they bought her home in a body bag. He’s completely ruined our lives."
He went on: “Fawziyah was god gifted. She was educated, and she was the best in my family. She was an only child. She went to gateways private school in Leeds. She was just very humble.
“Fawziyah was a lawyer by profession. She was a kind-hearted, honest girl. I never shouted as Fawziyah. I brought her up as my own niece. She was just impeccable.
"She was just a level-headed girl that didn’t show off about anything, that wanted to be loved, but unfortunately she met the wrong guy."
Anwar was jailed for 20 years earlier this week after being found guilty of murder.
Every week in the UK, two women are murdered by a partner or ex-partner - for confidential support, call the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Freephone Helpline on 0808 2000 247 or visit womensaid.co.uk. If you or your family have lost a friend or family member through fatal domestic abuse, AAFDA (Advocacy After Fatal Domestic Abuse) can offer specialist and expert support and advocacy. For more info visit www.aafda.org.uk.
