Banaz Mahmod
Banaz Mahmod was an Iraqi Kurdish woman who lived in Mitcham, south London. She was murdered at age 20 on the orders of her family in an honour killing. Her father, her uncle and two of her cousins were among those later convicted of her murder.
Background
Banaz was born in the Kurdish region of Iraq, moving to England when she was 10 years old. She came from a strictly traditional Kurdish family who originated from the rural Mirawdale tribal area of Qaladiza. She had five siblings; four sisters and a brother..At age sixteen she was forced to marry an older man who the family knew from their hometown. She came into contact with Police throughout her marriage, reporting that she'd been raped and beaten on multiple occasions by her husband. Her family did not support her despite knowing about the violence inflicted upon her. Banaz left her husband and fell in love with someone of her own choosing: Rahmat Sulemani, an Iranian Kurd. Banaz's uncle, Ari Agha Mahmod, and father, Mahmod Babakir Mahmod, disapproved of her actions and felt that she had shamed them.
On 2 December 2005, a meeting was held at the home of Ari Agha Mahmod, Banaz's uncle. He had been informed that Banaz and Rahmat had continued their relationship despite claims to the contrary. It was agreed that both should be killed for bringing shame onto the family and the community.
On 4 December 2005, fearing for her safety, Banaz went to the police to report that her uncle had threatened to kill both her and her boyfriend. She'd apparently learned of the plot due to a phone call from her uncle to her mother. On 12 December, she delivered a letter to Wimbledon Police Station listing those she claimed were going to kill her.
On New Year's Eve Police were called to a cafe in Wimbledon where Banaz had presented herself claiming that her father had tried to kill her. She was under the influence of alcohol and had injuries to her hands, having smashed a window during her escape. The police woman who interviewed her didn't believe her, referring to her as "manipulative" and "melodramatic", and wanted to charge her with criminal damage for breaking the window. Whilst in hospital Banaz gave an account of events to her boyfriend, which he recorded on his phone and later handed to the police.
On 22 January, an attempt was made to kidnap Sulemani, three of the men were among those that Banaz had already named; both he and Banaz separately reported the incident to the police. Banaz was scheduled to return to the police station on 24 January, but she never arrived.
Murder
On the morning of 24 January 2006, Banaz's parents left the family home to take their youngest daughter to school and go shopping, leaving Banaz asleep in the lounge. Mohamad Marid Hama, Mohammed Saleh Ali and Omar Hussain arrived at the property shortly thereafter; according to the covert recordings of Hama, made while he was on remand, the trio subjected Banaz to more than two hours of rape and torture before she was strangled with a ligature.Her body was forced into a suitcase, transported to a house in Handsworth, West Midlands and buried in the garden.
Investigation
On 25 January 2006, Banaz was reported missing by her boyfriend, Rahmat Sulemani, who'd become concerned for her welfare after being unable to contact her. The Police didn't initially take the report seriously; her parents portrayed themselves as an easy-going, tolerant family, claiming that Banaz often stayed out overnight, they were insistent that she was not a missing person. Sulemani persisted, however, "harassing" the Police into taking action.Consequently, her parents and uncle were interviewed and their homes searched. The interviews exposed inconsistencies in the account originally given by her parents and analysis of Sulemani's phone records indicated that her father was not the indulgent parent he claimed to be. Cross-checking against the numerous contacts Banaz had already had with the Police enabled them to compile a list of persons of interest.
The investigation was taken over by the Metropolitan Police Homicide and Serious Crime Command and was led by Detective Chief Inspector Caroline Goode. Initially working on the assumption that Banaz was alive and being held against her will, a search and arrest operation was conducted; simultaneous raids were carried out at properties across the country, but there was no sign of Banaz, her phone hadn't been active since late on 23 January and her bank account remained untouched.
Banaz's father and uncle, along with other potential suspects, were arrested. All were uncooperative within the interviews and the detectives were met with attempts by members of the wider Kurdish community to thwart the investigation and protect the suspects. Despite this, in February 2005, Mohamad Marid Hama was charged with murder. While in custody he was covertly recorded bragging about his role, and the role of others, in the murder of Banaz and the disposal of her body. Hama directly implicated her uncle, Ari Agha Mahmod, and her cousins, Mohammed Saleh Ali, Omar Hussain and Dana Amin. The recordings, coupled with phone and vehicle tracking data, enabled Banaz's remains to be located. Her body was found on 28 April 2006.
On 30 April 2006, Ari Agha Mahmod was charged with murder, followed by Mahmod Babakir Mahmod in August.
Both Mohammed Saleh Ali and Omar Hussain fled to Iraq after the murder. But in June 2009, Ali was extradited, in what was the first-ever extradition from Iraq to the United Kingdom, and charged with murder. In March 2010, Hussain was also extradited and subsequently charged with murder.
Legal proceedings
In July 2007, Banaz's father and uncle were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of 20 and 23 years respectively; Mohammad Hama pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to life, with a minimum of 17 years.In November 2010, Mohammed Saleh Ali and Omar Hussain were found guilty of murder and sentenced to serve at least 22 and 21 years respectively.
In December 2013, Dana Amin was found guilty and jailed for 8 years for helping to dispose of Mahmod's body. Amin challenged both his conviction and sentence; the appeal was dismissed in September 2014.
Convictions and sentences
| Convictions | Sentence | |
| Mahmod Babakir Mahmod | Murder | Life imprisonment with minimum term of 20 years |
| Ari Agha Mahmod | Murder | Life imprisonment with minimum term of 23 years |
| Mohamad Marid Hama | Murder | Life imprisonment with minimum term of 17 years |
| Pshtewan Hama | Conspiracy to pervert the course of justice | Time served |
| Mohammed Saleh Ali | Murder, conspiracy to kidnap, threats to kill, perverting the course of justice | Life imprisonment with minimum term of 22 years |
| Omar Hussain | Murder, conspiracy to kidnap, threats to kill, perverting the course of justice | Life imprisonment with minimum term of 21 years |
| Dana Amin | Perverting the course of justice, preventing the victim's lawful and decent burial | 8 years imprisonment |
Aftermath
The handling of Mahmod's case, by the Metropolitan Police and West Midlands Police, leading up to her murder was investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. It found that she had been "let down" and that death threats she had reported were not taken seriously. IPCC Commissioner, Nicola Williams, said:"Banaz Mahmod was a young woman who lost her life in terrible circumstances....It is clear that the police response was at best mixed.. There were delays in investigations, poor supervision, a lack of understanding and insensitivity".
As a result of its investigation the IPCC recommended that written warnings be issued to several Police officers involved in the case and that two Metropolitan Police officers should appear before a disciplinary panel as a result of the "worst failings" found. The disciplinary process was abandoned before it could convene due to "lack of evidence".
The Metropolitan Police team responsible for finding Mahmod's body and for building a case against those involved in her murder won the Detective Investigation Award for their work; Detective Chief Inspector Caroline Goode was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for leading the investigation.
Following her murder Mahmod's boyfriend, Rahmat Sulemani, moved to a new location, was given a new identity and lived under police protection. He committed suicide in 2016.
In popular culture
Her story was chronicled in the 2012 documentary film , directed and produced by Deeyah Khan.In 2015 actor/rapper Riz MC released a song, entitled "Benaz", which was based on Mahmod's story, in his mixtape Englistan released on St. George's Day.
A ballad was created by a 13-year-old girl, narrating the story of Mahmod and published in Sisterhood.
A two-part drama, "Honour", chronicles the investigation into the murder of Banaz Mahmod. Starring Keeley Hawes as DCI Caroline Goode, it's scheduled for release in Autumn 2020.