US hitwoman in niqab guilty of murder plot

Failed shooting part of family vendetta by her UK lover

- By Paul Jeeves Crime Editor

AN American whose gun jammed during a failed assassination attempt in Birmingham has been found guilty of conspiracy to murder.

Aimee Betro flew to the UK before disguising herself in a niqab and trying to shoot Sikander Ali at pointblank range outside his home. She had become embroiled in a family vendetta through her British lover.

Betro, 45, from Wisconsin, was extradited from Armenia earlier this year having taken part in a plot orchestrated by Mohammed Nabil Nazir, 31, and his father Mohammed Aslam, 56, to attack a rival family.

Nazir was jailed for 32 years in November 2024 for offences including conspiracy to murder, while Aslam was sentenced to 10 years for his part in the bungled 2019 assassination plot, which followed a feud with Mr Ali's father, Aslat Mahumad.