MORRISTOWN: A man was convicted on Thursday for setting up the fatal shooting of his Pakistan-born wife while the couple was on a walk with one of their young sons.

A jury deliberated for less than four hours before convicting Kashif Parvaiz of scheming with his girlfriend to kill his wife and make it look like a random attack.

The August 2011 shooting occurred while Parvaiz, his 27-year-old wife, Nazish Noorani, and their son walked near Noorani 's family's home in a New Jersey suburb about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from New York that is home to a large Pakistani-American population.

Noorani was killed, Parvaiz was wounded and the boy was unharmed.

The couple's other son was with family members in the house.

Antoinette Stephen pleaded guilty to murder and other offenses and testified against Parvaiz.

Stephen was having an affair with Parvaiz and admitted firing the fatal shots.

The victim's sister, Lubna Choudhry, cried in the hallway in the arms of her brother, Kaleem Norrani, after the verdict was read.

The family did not immediately comment. Prosecutors said during the three-week trial that Parvaiz emailed two black magic companies asking if they could come up with a way to make his wife leave him, kill herself or disappear.

They said he paid at least $4,500 for spells and prayers from the company.

Parvaiz was convicted of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, endangering the welfare of a child, child abuse, weapon charges, and hindering apprehension by lying to the police.

He faces life in prison at his sentencing, which is scheduled for April 24. Stephen faces a minimum of 30 years in prison, but has yet to be sentenced.

Opinion

Editorial

Reserved seats
Updated 15 May, 2024

Reserved seats

The ECP's decisions and actions clearly need to be reviewed in light of the country’s laws.
Secretive state
15 May, 2024

Secretive state

THERE is a fresh push by the state to stamp out all criticism by using the alibi of protecting national interests....
Plague of rape
15 May, 2024

Plague of rape

FLAWED narratives about women — from being weak and vulnerable to provocative and culpable — have led to...
Privatisation divide
Updated 14 May, 2024

Privatisation divide

How this disagreement within the government will sit with the IMF is anybody’s guess.
AJK protests
14 May, 2024

AJK protests

SINCE last week, Azad Jammu & Kashmir has been roiled by protests, fuelled principally by a disconnect between...
Guns and guards
14 May, 2024

Guns and guards

THERE are some flawed aspects to our society that we must start to fix at the grassroots level. One of these is the...