A husband has been found guilty of murdering his pregnant wife by pushing her off Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh
Kashif Anwar killed Fawziyah Javed, 31, in September 2021, by shoving her from the 823ft high hill, causing fatal injury to her and her unborn child.
Javed, who was around 17 weeks pregnant when she was pushed, used her dying words to reveal it was her abusive husband who caused her to fall around 50ft down the hillside.
Witness Daniyah Rafique managed to reach Javad on the side of the landmark in the Scottish capital, where she was told: “Don’t let my husband near me, he pushed me.”
The 29-year-old Anwar was convicted on Thursday after a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh and has been jailed for 20 years. Anwar, from Leeds in West Yorkshire, had denied the charge.
The court heard that PC Rhiannon Clutton was told by Javed her husband pushed her because she “told him I wanted to end [the marriage]”.
Police Sergeant Alastair Paisle was a crime scene manager at the site of the incident and told the trial at the High Court he estimated Javed had fallen “between 40 and 50ft”.
Consultant forensic pathologist Dr Ralph Bouhaidar told the court on Tuesday that Javed died from complications of multiple injuries and a fall from height.
He detailed her injuries to the jury with the assistance of a 3D model, which showed the areas of her body which were injured in the fall.
Judge Lord Beckett imposed a mandatory life sentence on Anwar with an imprisonment period of a minimum of 20 years.
He told Anwar: “You have been found guilty of murdering Fawziyah Javed who was a very special person.
“She was your pregnant wife and you also caused the death of your unborn child.”
He told the killer that his victim was willing to trust that he would keep her safe when they went up Arthur’s Seat, but that he pushed her off when nobody else was around.
The judge said Ms Javed’s mother, Yasmin Javed, had described her as a “beautiful soul inside and out”.
As Anwar was handcuffed and taken to the cells, a family member of Javed shouted “die you b*****d” at him.
Jurors were visibly upset after the result, some crying, and the judge thanked them for the “admirable way” they performed their duties.
In a statement, Javed‘s mother said: “There are just no words to describe the depth of pain and grief.
“There’s no words in the English dictionary that go deep enough.”
Fawziyah’s parents, Mohammed and Yasmin Javed, said she was the perfect child and could not wait to become grandparents.
The couple, who live in Leeds, were present in court for the trial.
Yasmin said every day feels surreal since her daughter’s death.
“She was an intelligent, articulate young woman. She was a perfect child, she was beautiful inside and out,” Yasmin said. “A lot of people have described her as an ‘angel on earth’.
“She was very humble, a teacher wrote to me who Fawziyah kept in touch with for 13 years and said ‘I didn’t realise how much charity work she did’, she never talked about it.
“Fawziyah would go above and beyond what was expected, she would never say no to anybody.
“She had perfect manners, I feel like the whole world is mourning her.”
Detective Inspector Bob Williamson, said: “This has been an incredibly difficult and traumatic time for Fawziyah’s family who are understandably devastated by her death.
“Fawziyah was much loved and had her life ahead of her with a new baby on the way. This was all cruelly taken from her and her unborn child at the hands of her own husband – someone who should have loved and protected her. Anwar’s actions were incomprehensible and as an investigation team, we welcome today’s verdict.
“I sincerely hope that the fact that he has now been found guilty will afford Fawziyah’s family and friends some sense of justice.”
