7 godzin temu
The DNA of an American woman alleged to have been involved in a failed assassination attempt was found on gun parts illegally sent to the UK more than a month later, a court has heard. Aimee Betro, 45, is accused of flying from Wisconsin as part of a plot to attack a rival family in Birmingham.
Betro allegedly disguised herself with a niqab when she tried to shoot Sikander Ali at point blank range outside his home in Measham Grove, Birmingham, on September 7 2019. However, the gun jammed, allowing Mr Ali to flee to safety.
Return to crime scene
She is alleged to have returned to the scene hours later in the early hours of September 8 and fired three shots into Mr Ali's house, which was empty at the time. Betro then left the UK and flew back to the US the next day, Birmingham Crown Court heard.
The court heard that father and son Mohammed Aslam, 56, and Mohammed Nabil Nazir, 31, of Elms Avenue in Derby, orchestrated the plot. Both men were jailed last year for their part in the bungled assassination attempt.
Family feud background
Nazir and Aslam had been involved in a feud with Mr Ali's father, Aslat Mahumad. The pair had been injured during disorder at Mr Mahumad's clothing boutique in Birmingham in July 2018, which led them to conspire to have someone kill him or a member of his family.
Prosecution counsel Tom Walkling KC said on Tuesday that Betro had been involved in "yet another" of Nazir's plots to get revenge on a rival. She is alleged to have sent three parcels full of ammunition and gun parts to the UK on October 16 2019.
DNA evidence discovered
The court heard the parts were wrapped in foil and paper inside three cardboard boxes, addressed to a man named Faris Quayum, from Derby. Nazir tipped off the police with intent to frame him as part of what prosecutors called a "devious scheme".
While the packages were intercepted and Mr Quayum arrested, Mr Walkling said Nazir's involvement in the plan eventually came to light. A woman, who the prosecution say was Betro, was seen at a post office 100 miles away from her home address in the US posting the parcels under a fake name.
Compelling evidence claim
Mr Walkling said: "In the case of each of those three packages, Aimee Betro's DNA has been found on the gun parts and ammunition inside them. There is no doubt, we say, that she handled the contents of those boxes."
He added: "She may not have known the full extent of Nazir's devious scheme, but there is no doubt that when she sent prohibited ammunition into the UK, she broke the law." Betro was allegedly in Armenia when Nazir was jailed for 32 years and Aslam for 10 years in November, but was returned to the UK in January this year to face her own criminal proceedings.
Trial continues
Mr Walkling said: "The prosecution say that the evidence in this case is compelling and strong. Aimee Betro was the would-be assassin on the 7th September 2019."
Betro denies conspiracy to murder, possessing a self-loading pistol and a charge of fraudulently evading the prohibition on importing ammunition. The trial continues.
(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
