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Issues quickly arose between the victim and Nadeem Begum due to his ‘traditional’ views on her role within the household
Nadeem Mohammed Begum(Image: GMP)
The face of an evil killer who strangled his own daughter-in-law to death at the family home has been revealed for the first time.
Despite his desperate attempts to cover up her murder, Nadeem Mohammed Begum has now been found guilty by a jury after his son's wife, 24-year-old Mashal Ilyas, was found dead at the bottom of the stairs at the home in Atherton last October.
Issues first came to light between Begum, 53, and Ilyas, who had moved into the family home after marrying Gulrez Nadeem by way of arranged marriage. Court heard how difficulties developed between Ms Ilyas and Begum due to his ‘traditional’ views on her role within the household and his expectation that she cook and clean for the household.
Coming from a 'liberal' family in Pakistan, a court was told that there were ‘arguments and upsets’ and she had described her living arrangements to her mother as ‘intolerable’ and a ‘toxic environment’.
Just seven months later, Ms Ilyas was found unconscious at the bottom of the stairs with injuries to her neck. A post mortem report later revealed that she had been subjected to asphyxiation.
But Begum, who had been home at the time, claimed he had been asleep and had not heard anything until he found her. This was disproved by phone evidence showing his phone was active for most of the morning.
He then called his other son, Danish Nadeem, telling jurors he did not know the number for an ambulance.
Suspicions were quickly raised by detectives after Mashal was found due to the injuries she had, and the inconsistent explanations given to the emergency services. A post mortem found that her death could not have been explained by anything other than a direct assault, with pressure being applied to her nose, mouth and throat.
Mashal also had a broken fingernail and other marks suggestive of a struggle in addition to blood staining on her trousers. Forensic testing confirmed the presence of Begum’s DNA in the blood.
Manchester Crown Court
Swabs taken from under Mashal’s fingernails matched Begum’s DNA and when he was arrested on October 13 last year, he had a small healing scratch to the front of his neck which was consistent with her broken fingernail.
Despite the evidence that Begum had killed his victim, what remains less clear is the reason for the fatal attack.
Jurors heard that Ms Ilyas came from a ‘liberal’ family in Pakistan and went on to marry Gulrez in January last year in Pakistan. After moving to the UK, she lived with the rest of the family in a three-bedroom semi-detached house on Oxford Road.
However, there were ‘tensions’ between Ms Ilyas and Begum around her role in the household, with expectation that she was meant to cook and clean for the whole family, rather than just her husband.
Prosecutor Mark Rhind KC said: "Her messages showed the defendant took a very traditional role as the authoritarian of the family, that he felt like he was in charge of the family - and his daughter-in-law.
“That meant her role was to cook and clean not just for her husband, but for the wider family and their children. It is clear that Mashal had been used to a far more liberal family life and struggled to accept her new reality.”
On October 9, 2024, the other family members, including Gulrez, had left the house to go to work leaving Ms Ilyas alone with Begum. She had called her mum at 10.15am, and was on the phone for around five minutes before telling her she needed to tend to the washing machine.
She left her phone on her bed, with her mum waiting on the call. She never returned to the phone and it was the last time she was heard alive.
Prosecutors alleged that sometime between 10:15am, when she left the call, and 11:40am, when the emergency services were called, she had been killed.
Ms Ilyas was pronounced dead at the scene. A post mortem report later revealed bruising to the neck, face, bruising to her arm, a broken finger nail and blood on the surface of the brain. Her cause of death was recorded as pressure to the neck and upper airway obstruction.
Mr Rhind told the court that during the attack, Ilyas had 'injured Mr Begum' as she attempted to 'fight for her life'.
Later when his phone was seized and analysed, it revealed that Begum had been using TikTok at 7.45am and later at 9.15am. Mr Rhind told jurors: “The defendant stayed in the house with the body, waiting for his son to come home. He did nothing to help her, not trying CPR, not doing anything to get help for her. He did little or nothing.”
On the day in question, Begum said he woke up at around 6am and went on his phone on TikTok. He told the court that Ms Ilyas served him breakfast at around 7.30am before he went back to his room. He denied seeing her for the rest of the morning until he found her at the bottom of the stairs at around 11am.
After being found guilty of murder, Begum, of Oxford Road, will be sentenced at a later date.
Katie Marsden, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said: “Mashal Ilyas’ life was cruelly cut short by Nadeem Begum. It is difficult to understand what drove Begum to take his daughter-in-law’s life in such a brutal way. We may never fully understand the circumstances which led to her tragic death.
“Begum lied to paramedics and the police, saying he was asleep at the time, when his phone clearly showed him as active. It was obvious from CCTV evidence at the property that only Begum and Mashal were present in the property at the time of her death.
