KARACHI, May 16: A policeman was sentenced to life imprisonment on Thursday for killing his wife over a domestic dispute in November 2011.

Jamshed Ali Khan, a police constable, was found guilty of murdering his spouse, Fauzia, at their house in Manzoor Colony.

The additional district and sessions judge (south), Jalaluddin Soomro pronounced the verdict after recording evidence of witnesses and final arguments from both sides.

The court also directed the convict to pay Rs100,000 to the legal heirs of the deceased. In case of non-payment, the convict would have to undergo an additional six-month imprisonment, the court ruled.

The court observed that the murder weapon was recovered from the possession of the accused policeman and two bullet casings were found at the crime scene while a ballistic report confirmed that the weapon had been used in the commissioning of offence.

It further observed that all the prosecution witnesses had deposed against the accused. The neighbours and relatives of the deceased deposed that the accused used to torture the victim, who had suspicions about his character, over domestic disputes.

The court ruled that the medical and other documentary evidence corroborated the evidence of the witnesses and the prosecution successfully proved its case against the accused by placing ample evidence before the court.

According to the prosecution, the accused had killed his wife on Nov 12, 2011 at their house in Manzoor Colony and tried to make the murder look like a suicide. After initial investigation, the police arrested him. He was later released by a court on bail.

The victim’s father had lodged a case against the policeman on a complaint at the Baloch Colony police station under Section 302 (premeditated murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

The accused was present before the court during the pronouncement of the judgement. He was taken into custody after the court verdict and sent to prison along with conviction warrant to serve out the sentence.