International manhunt for American ‘hijab assassin’ who bungled Brit father and son’s contract killing when her gun jammed as she took her shot – as police reveal hitwoman fled back to the US after botched job
An international manhunt is underway for an American female assassin who was hired by a British father and son to settle a feud, but the hit failed when her gun jammed.
Aimee Betro, 44, who has ties to Illinois, was hired by Mohammed Aslam, 56, and his son Mohammed Nazir, 30, to carry out a revenge killing of a boutique clothing store owner and his relatives.
The assassin disguised himself in a hijab as she tried to shoot her Sikander Ali outside a house in Acocks Green, Birmingham on September 7, 2019, but the gun jammed.
She later returned in a taxi and fired three shots into the property before texting their main target, Mr Ali’s father Aslat Mahamud: “Stop playing hide and seek” and “Where are you hiding?” ‘
Betro flew back to Chicago two days after the botched contract killing and today West Midlands Police said efforts to find her were ‘continuing’.
Mohammed Aslam (pictured) and his son Mohammed Nazir hired Aimee Betro, 44, to carry out a revenge killing of a clothing boutique owner and his relatives
Nazir, who was convicted along with his father on Monday of conspiracy to commit murder
Nazir and Aslam, who were found guilty of conspiracy to murder on Monday, harbored grudges against Ali’s family. following a violent dispute at his boutique clothing store in Birmingham on July 21, 2018, which saw windows smashed and the interior ‘destroyed’.
Police arrived and found that Nazir and Aslam had been injured.
In September 2019, the pair flew from the United States to Birmingham on Betro in an attempt to kill Mr Ali and his family.
During her time in Britain, the hitman stayed in hotels in Manchester, Derby, London, Brighton and Birmingham, including a Radisson Blu.
While in Derby she is said to have made an insurance claim claiming she had suffered a flat tire on a rental car before crashing into two stationary vehicles, one of which was owned by Aslam.
On September 6, Nazir and Aslam traveled from their home in Derby to central Birmingham, with Nazir spending more than two hours in a hotel with Betro, who ordered a takeaway from Deliveroo.
Betro had arranged to meet Mr Ali the next day on the pretext of buying a car.
Birmingham Crown Court heard how Betro – disguised in a hijab – pulled up in a Mercedes before Mr Ali pulled up in a nearby Audi.
Kevin Hegarty KC, prosecuting, said: ‘As he did so, the would-be killer emerged from the driver’s side of the Mercedes.
‘When she left the Mercedes, she left the driver’s door open. She very calmly walked up to Sikander Ali and pointed a gun at him at head height.
“As she got closer to Sikander Ali, he saw her and he saw the gun and she pulled the trigger to fire the gun at him. Luckily for him, the gun jammed.”
Mr Hegarty said Mr Ali quickly reversed and drove away, while Betro left her Mercedes nearby – where it was later found by police.
Measham Grove in Acocks Green, Birmingham, where the attempted hit was carried out
The next morning she took a taxi to the house and fired three shots into the property before returning to the taxi. No one was hit.
She then sent threatening text messages to the head of the family, Aslat Mahamud, before fleeing to the US two days later.
The police started an investigation into the shootings, which led to Aslam and Nazir. Detectives were able to trace their involvement through their phones, CCTV and financial research.
The jury heard that Nazir flew to America a few days after Betro, who he named as his travel documentation contact, but was arrested the following month after returning to Britain. Aslam was also arrested.
Nazir was found guilty on Wednesday, June 5, of conspiracy to commit murder and possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
He was also found guilty of perverting the course of justice and illegally importing firearms over a plot to bring weapons into the country and then blame someone else for trapping them.
According to a tip police received, Betro had sent weapons from Illinois.
Aslam was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder. He was acquitted of a firearms offence.
The pair will be sentenced on August 9.
Detective Constable Matt Marston, from West Midlands Police, said: ‘Aslam and Nazir were determined to get revenge after an argument which left them injured.
“The lengths they went to to ensure they didn’t get involved in pulling the trigger are enormous.
‘However, thanks to fantastic police work and the support of our Derbyshire colleagues, we were able to place them at the heart of the murder plot.’
A second general view of Measham Grove, where the attempted murder took place
A spokesperson added to MailOnline: ‘Efforts to locate a woman we believe to be involved in the conspiracy continue.’
Derbyshire Police said: ‘That no one died as a result of Aslam and Nazir’s actions is nothing short of pure luck.
“Their plan was to kill and if it wasn’t for the gun lockup, there’s a good chance this would have been a murder investigation.
“The importation of firearms is an extremely serious crime and in this case the intention was to entrap their target in revenge for a previous incident.
“As a police service, we will do everything we can to apprehend and bring to justice those who seek to bring these weapons into our communities.”
High-profile female assassins responsible for multiple deaths
Kim Hyun-hui: North Korean agent who killed 115 people and then defected
Kim Hyunhui in 2018
The mother of two killed 115 people as an agent of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-un’s father.
She was involved in the bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 from Baghdad to Seoul on November 29, 1987, which killed everyone on board.
Kim was selected to join North Korea’s secret service at the age of 18 because of her ability to speak multiple languages. After rigorous training, she received her first assignment at the age of 25.
She and her fellow agent Kim Seung Il traveled to Austria and pretended to be a Japanese couple on vacation.
They picked up the bomb – a Panasonic radio packed with chemicals – in Vienna and took it to Baghdad airport.
The plan was nearly foiled when guards assessed the device before their flight.
One took out the batteries the bomb needed to explode and said Kim couldn’t take them on board.
Now pardoned, Kim works for South Korea’s National Intelligence Service and is writing her memoirs to warn the world of the threat from North Korea.
Kim was involved in the bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 from Baghdad to Seoul on November 29, 1987, which killed everyone on board
Maria Jiminez: Mexican cartel hitman who confessed to killing twenty people
Maria Jimenez, also known as La Tosca, was paid $1,700 (£1,300) a month to carry out murders for the Los Zetas drug cartel.
Mexico’s most prolific female assassin confessed to killing 20 people, including rival drug traffickers and a police officer, and was convicted in 2012.
Maria Jimenez was paid $1,700 (£1,300) a month to carry out murders against the Los Zetas drug cartel
She is said to have led a group of men, women and teenagers as Los Zetas battled their rivals in the Gulf Cartel for control over drug distribution and other criminal activities.
Her arrest came days after 23 people were found hanging from a bridge or beheaded and dumped along the border city of Nuevo Laredo.
Daria Trepova: Accused of bombings targeting Putin critic
Daria Trepova in court this year
The 26-year-old Russian is accused of knowingly blowing up prominent Vladimir Putin propagandist Vladlen Tatarsky, 40, by handing him a bomb hidden in a statuette.
Prosecutors allege she deliberately passed the bomb to Tatarsky – whose real name was Maxim Fomin – at a café in St Petersburg, on orders from Ukrainian intelligence.
Trepova insists she believed the Tatarski statue contained a listening device and is therefore innocent of intentional murder.
She claims that Ukraine thought she too would be killed, although despite being close to the blast, she was unharmed and fled the scene before being arrested.
“I was actually sent to die with a bomb,” she said, referring to her Ukrainian handlers.
But prosecutors reject her version and have requested one of the longest sentences for a woman in modern Russian legal history.