Brother of murdered Ruqia Haidari recalls the horrifying moment her killer husband told him to 'come and get' his sister's body
- Taqi Haidari, from Australia, revealed his sister's killer rang him to collect her
- Read More: How a woman, 21, was married to an Uber driver she didn't know
The brother of murdered Ruqia Haidari has revealed how her killer rang him to tell him to collect his dead sister's body.
Taqi Haidari, from Victoria, Australia, spoke about the chilling phone call he received from his sister's husband, Mohammad Ali Halimi, after he murdered her in November 2019, during candid interview with 60 Minutes Australia.
Speaking about the terrifying moment he learnt of his sibling's murder Taqi said: 'He was swearing at her, I was worried, he hung up the phone, I was so worried I freaked out and after that, about 10 minutes later, I had a call from Ali, he says "come and get your sister's dead body, I'm going to the police station", and he hung up.’
Ruqia was forced to marry the 25-year-old Afghan refugee and Uber driver by her mother Sakina Muhammad Jan, who paid a dowry payment to her daughter's soon-to-be killer.
Just six weeks after the wedding ceremony in January 2020, when Ruqia turned 21, Halimi slashed her throat twice and left her on the floor of their Perth home to die.
Taqi Haidari, from from Victoria, Australia, is the brother of Ruqia Haidari, who was murdered by her husband
Talking about his sister's wedding, Taqi said there were no initial concerns about Ali.
He said: 'The way he was behaving, the way he was talking, the way his personality was, I thought he was a good man.'
Taqi only realised that there might be an issue after the wedding, when his sister moved to Perth with her new husband, and asked her family to not contact her again.
A few weeks into the marriage, Ali sent his Ruqia's family a video complaining that she was not cooking or cleaning for him.
Taqi said: 'I was so worried and very nervous, like stressed, what's going on, what's actually happening?'
He tried calling his sister, but when she didn't answer, he called Ali - and that call has haunted him ever since.
'He was like ''it's none of your business, it's my life, you mind your own business'' and then he got mad at me, and he started swearing, yelling, screaming over the phone,' he said.
'I heard that she [Ruqia] just woke up, and she was saying, "who are you talking to? who are you swearing at?" you could hear her in the in the background, and then he hung up the phone.'
Ruqia (centre) was forced to marry 25-year-old Afghan refugee and Uber driver Mohammad Ali Halimi (left) by her mother Sakina Muhammad Jan (right), who paid him a dowry payment
Just six weeks after the wedding ceremony in January 2020, when Ruqia turned 21, Halimi slashed her throat twice and left her on the floor of their Perth home to die
After hanging up, Ali went on to murder Ruqia by slitting her throat and leaving her to die as he drove himself to the police station.
In a police statement, Ali said he snapped after a 'long period of rejection, emotional heartache and confusion', adding that Ruqia told him she had been forced into marrying him.
However, while Taqi claims his sister wasn't pushed into the marriage, prosecutors accused Sakina of forcing her then 20-year-old daughter to marry Ali. She pleaded not guilty.
A Federal Police investigation into the murder eventually uncovered the disturbing trail of events which led to the tragedy, including the role Sakina played.
She was found guilty of coercing her daughter, on 25 November 2019, into marrying Ali Halimi.
The two-week trial heard how Ali travelled from Perth to meet Ms Haidari's family in Shepperton in May 2019.
The couple had been set up by Shukria Muqudas, a local matchmaker in the Hazara community, who was also a former friend of Muhammad Jan, ABC News reported.
The court heard Ruqia did not want to get married. Social worker Kerrie Young, who knew the bride, had contacted police to raise concerns that Ruqia was being forced into the union.
Ruqia was just 20 when she was forced into marriage with the man who went onto murder her
'I remember Ruqia indicating that she was given an ultimatum. She was advised that she should get married to this man,' she said.
Federal police had travelled to Shepperton and interviewed Ruqia over fears 'she was at risk of forced marriage'.
Despite the concern, two Islamic 'nikah' religious ceremonies took place to formalise the union prior to the wedding in November 2019, which 500 guests attended.
The matchmaker told the court Ruqia wanted to end the relationship before the second nikah took place, but was overruled by her mother.
The court heard that Ruqia told her parents: 'I don't want to get married … I don't want this and I'm not going to accept this at all.'
Sakina responded: 'Are you my mother or am I your mother? I can make decisions for you.'
At this time, it is said the mother had already given a dowry payment to the groom.
It's believed the mother did not want to stop the arranged marriage because she was fearful the family's reputation would be damaged.
Sakina was charged in October 2020 by human trafficking investigators with the Federal Police.
She pleaded not guilty but the jury, which deliberated for over a day, found her guilty.
The forced marriage offence comes under Commonwealth law in Australia and has a maximum penalty of seven years in jail. Sakina was released on bail ahead of a pre-sentence hearing on July 23.
Meanwhile, Ali Halimi was convicted of murder and was sentenced to 19 years in jail.
