A Pakistani-origin man has been convicted of murdering an Indian restaurant manager in England. The accused, Shajeeb Khalid, killed the Indian manager by running him over with a stolen car. On Valentine's Day this year, Vignesh Pattabhiraman was cycling home from duty at a restaurant in southeast England when Shajeeb hit him with a stolen car.
Vignesh was rushed to the Royal Berkshire Hospital where he was declared dead. The postmortem report revealed that Vignesh died due to head injuries.
Accused Shajeeb Khalid was arrested in February
Pakistani-origin accused Shajeeb Khalid was arrested by the police on February 19 and was charged with murder a day earlier. He initially accepted the murder charge. Now, after a 28-day trial in court, a jury has convicted him of murder. He is to be sentenced on October 10. Another person in the case has also been found guilty of helping accused Khalid. While the other accused has been released by the court.
Expressing relief over the decision of the chief inspector who led the murder investigation, he said that it was clear that Khalid's intention was to harm Vignesh. He used the stolen car as a weapon. He further said that the conversation between Khalid and Hussain on the night of the incident made it clear that accused Shajeeb Khalid came to know about the incident and then helped Khalid. The officer called the decision a step towards justice for Vignesh's family.
Funds were raised for the family of the deceased Vignesh
After Vignesh's death, a large number of people supported him. Under a campaign, a fund of 52,500 pounds i.e. 57.85 lakh Indian rupees was raised to help his wife Ramya bring his body back to India. Tributes were paid online to Vignesh's friends and family. In which he was shown as a manager.