Husband and his parents jailed for leaving wife in vegetative state after arranged marriage

A man and his parents have been jailed after forcing his wife to take medication and covering her in a corrosive substance, leaving her in a vegetative state following their arranged marriage.

Ambreen Fatima Sheikh, then 30, was given the anti-diabetes drug glimepiride, which can be fatal to non-diabetes patients, and likely doused in cleaning product before she was admitted to hospital on 1 August 2015, Leeds Crown Court heard.

She had come to live in the UK with her new husband Asgar Sheikh, 31, following an arranged marriage in Pakistan.

Although none of the family gave evidence in court, Asgar Sheikh’s mother and father, Khalid, 55, and Shabnam Sheikh, 52, are believed to have been behind the catastrophic brain injury she suffered.

Ms Sheikh, now 39, has been under palliative care ever since. Doctors expected she would die when her ventilator was turned off, but she began to breathe for herself.

According to the prosecution, she is totally unaware of her surroundings, has no motor or pain responses, and will likely die from her injuries in the decades to come.

The three relatives were found guilty of allowing a vulnerable adult to suffer physical harm and perverting the course of justice after a trial last year.

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On Wednesday they were sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison.

Handing down their punishment, judge Mrs Justice Lambert said: “It is difficult to imagine a more serious injury, short of death.”

Unhappy with wife’s housework

The trial heard that Ms Sheikh arrived at the family home in Clara Street, Huddersfield, in 2014.

She rarely left the house and never went out alone, speaking little English and having no friends or family in the UK, the judge said.

The court heard that soon after she arrived, the family were unhappy with her housework and her father-in-law suggested she be sent back to Pakistan.

Concerns were raised about her wellbeing in July 2015, but a police welfare check concluded she was fit and well.

However, the judge said this bore “little weight” due to her lack of English and her father-in-law being present.

The judge could not be sure who administered the drugs or the substance. But she concluded there was a two or three-day delay in the family calling an ambulance after Ms Sheikh fell unconscious.

During this time the judge said she became severely dehydrated and inhaled fluids that may have caused her brain injury. She was also left with severe burns from the liquid on her back, bottom, and right ear.

Family lied to 999 call handlers and paramedics

The judge said that even when they called 999, the family lied about what had happened to her.

According to witness statements, Ms Sheikh was in good health before the incident and is believed to have worked as a teacher in Pakistan.

Her mother is still there, but in poor health, and her father has since died. She has seven siblings, including a brother who has visited her in the palliative care home.

Her husband’s sister Shafuga Sheikh, 29, was also found guilty of allowing a vulnerable adult to suffer physical harm and perverting the course of justice, but was given an 18-month suspended sentence.

Her husband’s brother Sakalayne Sheikh, 25, was given a six-month sentence, suspended for two years for perverting the course of justice.

West Yorkshire Police’s DCI Matthew Holdsworth said after the sentencing: “This has been an awful case in which a young, healthy woman has been catastrophically injured and robbed of her future by the very people she should have expected to protect her.

“While Ambreen still technically lives, it is tragically believed she may never regain consciousness.”

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