Family of 'hero' police officer Sharon Beshenivsk who was shot dead during 2005 armed robbery say 'no prison sentence could ever compensate' them for their loss as robbery gang ringleader is sentenced to die behind bars

The family of 'hero' police officer Sharon Beshenivsky declared the end of a 19-year 'journey seeking the truth and justice' as the mastermind of the robbery in which she was murdered was condemned to die behind bars.

Piran Ditta Khan, 75, was given a mandatory life sentence with a minimum term of 40 years today for murder.

Taking into account time spent awaiting trial, it means the takeaway restaurant boss would have to live to the age of 111 to be considered for parole.

His sentencing at Leeds Crown Court was an emotional and landmark moment for PC Beshenivsky's husband Paul, 61, and their two children Lydia, 22, and Paul, 25, who sat in court to hear the judge's decision. PC Beshenivsky's mother and brother were also there.

In a personal statement Lydia told the court she regards her mother – killed aged 38 awhilst attending an armed robbery on duty – to be a 'hero' who 'paid the ultimate sacrifice.'

While Mr Beshenivsky, a father-of-four who has since remarried, described the ordeal of coping with the final trial of the seven members of the robbery gang as 'like losing Sharon all over again.'

The judge Mr Justice Hilliard rejected the prosecution's case for a 'whole life order' but said Khan would 'inevitably' never be released anyway.

He said PC Beshenivsky and her colleague Teresa Milburn, who was shot but survived, deserved the public's 'admiration and gratitude' for fearlessly responding to the emergency and investigating the armed robbery on the Universal Express travel agency in Bradford in November 2005.

The judge said: 'PC Beshenivsky's courage and commitment to her duty that day cost her her life.'

The court heard Khan had picked the location of the robbery, planned it and gave the go ahead for three men armed with guns and a knife to enter the travel agents that day. They hoped to steal up to £100,000 but escaped with £5,405.

Both police officers were gunned down at point blank range as the robbers fled.

'You intended the weapons should be used to kill if necessary to do so', he told Khan.

With the net closing in father-of-six Khan left his business, wife and children behind and flew to his native Pakistan two months after the murder.

He remained there a free man until diplomatic pressure from the British government led to his arrest in January 2020 and extradition to the UK.

The judge refused to reduce the minimum term because of his age and ill health as he had enjoyed his healthy years fleeing justice.

In his statement read in court Mr Beshenivsky said he hoped this 'closing chapter' would give his family 'some degree of closure.'

He said his wife was killed in a most 'brutal, callous and futile way.'

'She never came home due to the actions and organisation of one person - Piran Ditta Khan.

'If Piran Ditta Khan had never organised the robbery, Sharon would never have been shot dead and she would have come home that day.'

He said the grief they suffered was 'unimaginable' but added: 'She was doing her duty as a police officer and the job she loved to do. We were all very proud of her.'

Lydia said she has 'little or no memory of my mum' and her death left a 'void that has never been filled.'

A statement read outside court on behalf of the entire family said 18 November, the date of the ill-fated robbery and Lydia's fourth birthday, was 'now a day of remembrance and memorial.'

'That was the day the lives of our family and those close to Sharon changed forever,' they said.

It began a journey lasting almost 19 years. 'A journey seeking the truth and justice for Sharon, who was not just a police officer, but a loving mum, wife, daughter, sister and friend to many.

'Our journey seeking justice and closure of the judicial process is now at an end. This journey has and continues to be difficult for us all. Enduring several trials over the years has been hard, each one of them taking us back to the very beginning, which made us feel like we had lost Sharon all over again. And now we once again pick up the pieces of our lives and continue forward as Sharon would have wanted us all to do.'

Adding: 'No prison sentence could ever compensate us for Sharon's life and our loss, but we will move forward knowing that justice has been served.'

A new photograph of PC Beshenivsky in her police uniform was released for the sentencing hearing.

Assistant Chief Constable Patrick Twiggs praised the multi-agency efforts that brought Khan to justice after so many years.

'We never gave up, we relentlessly pursued Khan even when things got tough, we never gave up,' he said.