Amjad Khan’s family was twice approached by a witness who asked for money in exchange for not giving evidence at Khan’s murder trial, according to his mother.
Sher Khan testified for the defence Monday at the trial of her son and Naim Saghir, who are charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Tasha Rosette on Nov. 20, 2005. Rosette’s body was found at the entrance to her Surrey basement suite. The 21-year-old had been stabbed more than 40 times and her throat was slashed.
The Crown’s theory is that Khan thought his family would be shamed if they found out that Rosette was pregnant with his baby. When Rosette refused to have an abortion he allegedly enlisted Saghir to kill her. Khan and Saghir were initially tried on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in 2008. In April of that year, Sher Khan testified, Crown witness Harvinder Saran showed up at her house and said that if the Khan family paid him $60,000 he would not testify against Khan. Sher Khan said she told Saran she had no money.
Saran went on to testify that in October 2005 Khan and Saghir picked him up and Khan pulled out cash and told Saran he wanted someone killed. Saran said he would do it and the three drove to Rosette’s apartment. Khan allegedly told Saran to go to the garage door and kill whoever opened it. Saghir allegedly handed Saran a steel bar. Saran said he was promised $2,000.
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He did not go through with the crime and instead told Vancouver police about the incident.
In June 2008 a jury convicted Khan and Saghir of murder and conspiracy. Three years later the B.C. Appeal Court overturned the convictions and ordered a new trial.
A couple of days after the decision, Sher Khan said, Saran knocked on her door once more to ask for money in exchange for not testifying at the retrial. The retrial began in late January.
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