Family guilty of murder

Four family members have been found guilty of murdering a 21-year-old pregnant woman they thought was possessed by evil spirits.

Following a 12-week trial at Birmingham Crown Court, Naila Mumtaz’s husband, Mohammed Tauseef Mumtaz, 25, his parents, Zia Ul-Haq and Salma Aslam, both aged 51, and his brother-in-law, Hammad Hussan, 24, were all found guilty of killing her.

Jurors heard that Mumtaz, who was accused of smothering his six-months pregnant wife, told police she tried to strangle herself and may have been “possessed” by an evil spirit.

The court was told that he claimed his wife’s death was “like a suicide” and that he had been “similarly possessed” at the city’s coroner’s court after her death.

All four defendants denied murdering Ms Mumtaz at her home in Craythorne Avenue, Handsworth Wood, Birmingham, in the early hours of July 8, 2009.