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Daily Mail
9 hours ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE A fatal mistake that led to bloody murder of a young mother: How wannabe influencer tracked down his wife who was in hiding... before slaughtering her in the street
A wannabe influencer who callously murdered his wife as she pushed their baby in his pram abused his social media knowhow to exploit a fatal error after she fled his violent, controlling behaviour. Tech-savvy Habibur Masum appeared to be embracing life in Britain after moving from Bangladesh to study for a masters in digital marketing in 2022. But behind closed doors he was an aggressive bully who had already confessed to a doctor that he felt like killing Kulsuma Akter. He subjected her to a campaign of abuse, banning her from wearing make-up or even drinking tea. In November 2023 the obsessive former marketing student flew into a rage over an innocuous text message the 27-year-old had received from a bakery colleague asking if she was working. Chillingly he warned her: 'I am going to murder you, and the police will be taking me' Consumed by unfounded jealousy, Masum held a knife to her throat as she clutched their newborn child in a desperate act of self-preservation. After a worried relative called police, he was arrested and charged with assault and making threats to kill. But despite a Crown Prosecution Service lawyer urging magistrates to lock him up on remand, he was granted bail on condition he stayed away from Ms Akter and their Oldham home. Fearing for her life, Ms Akter and the couple's baby son were given sanctuary at a refuge in a secret location. A furious Masum vowed to track her down, taking sinister advantage of his digital skills to stalk and then fatally dupe her online. First he took advantage of her failure to switch off the location on her Snapchat account to establish she was living in Bradford. Ms Akter reported the new death threats to police, and arrangements were put in place to rehouse her. Meanwhile after taunting her that he had found the refuge, Masum laid a false trail to trick her into believing he was on holiday in Spain. Believing it was safe to take their son out amongst the Saturday afternoon shoppers on April 6 last year, to her horror Ms Akter - who was due to be rehomed for her own safety two days later - was instead confronted by Masum. In a brazen daylight attack of barbaric ferocity which shocked the nation he repeatedly plunged the blade into his screaming partner, stabbing her more than 25 times before slitting her throat. The killer was filmed dancing at an event in a TikTok video shared last year After the 'cold-blooded' killing, callous Masum was captured on CCTV grinning as he boarded a bus to make his escape, having left his wife for dead and abandoning their baby in the street. Police launched a manhunt and Masum - who had shaved off his beard - was traced two days later after seeking treatment for 'lockjaw' 170 miles away at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire. Masum, 26, pleaded guilty to his wife's manslaughter and possession of a bladed article earlier this month but denied murder on the grounds he had lost control. But yesterday a jury at Bradford Crown Court unanimously convicted him of murder after deliberating for less than six hours. Masum - who was also found guilty of stalking, assault and threats to kill - wiped away tears in the dock before being remanded back into custody ahead of his sentencing. Despite two police forces being made aware of the threats Ms Akter had been receiving, a probe by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found there had been no breach of professional standards. But campaigners said her brutal killing could have been prevented, saying the latest example of a woman murdered by her abusive partner once again underlined the need for change. 'Her death was preventable, and the loss of Kulsuma is a stark reminder of the deadly consequences of honour-based abuse and coercive control,' a spokeswoman for charity Karma Nirvana said. A mugshot issued by West Yorkshire Police as they launched a manhunt for Masum following Ms Akter's brutal murder in April 2024 - while on the run he shaved off his beard in a vain bid to avoid capture 'We must do more to protect women like her.' The organisation - which helps victims of honour-based violence - said her tragic killing was a 'stark reminder' of the need to give greater protection to those fleeing abuse. Bradford West Labour MP Naz Shah said violence against women was 'a cancer that needs eradicating'. 'Kulsuma came to Bradford trying to find safety and her attacker found her,' she told the BBC. 'To keep women safe we need to change the culture of misogyny and domestic violence.' With his slick social media skills and confident persona, Masum had appeared to be embracing life in Britain. Growing up in the city of Sylhet, Masum is understood to have studied English literature in Bangladesh, working for a wedding planning firm and as a content writer for a digital marketing agency. In 2022 the self-styled 'adventure lover' began studying for a masters in digital marketing at the University of Bedfordshire, sharing vlogs about life in the UK. One shows him admiring the wide range of Bangladesh-made clothes in Primark before trying on a range of winter jumpers. In another, Masum is seen filming himself as snow falls, warning his paltry 14 YouTube subscribers not too 'stay out in the cold too long' as they could get chest problems. Masum studied for a masters in digital marketing at the University of Bedfordshire before working for a creative marketing agency In further clips he looks every inch the proud dad, including one to his 4,300 Facebook followers on how to prepare a hospital bag for 'your newborn baby'. Yet behind the carefully crafted image, Masum was a violent and possessive bully who controlled and terrorised Ms Akter, who had followed him from Bangladesh and spoke little English. More than a year before murdering her, Masum had told a doctor he 'felt like he would kill her'. He stopped her from wearing make-up and would check her phone to see who she had been talking to, relatives said. Ms Akter had to ask permission from her husband before going out and even stopped her drinking tea, because he didn't like the drink. During one argument he divorced her under Islamic law by 'saying it out loud three times', but later said she was confused and he had only said it twice, his trial heard. In July 2023 - shortly before their son was born - she went to stay with her brother because of Masum's controlling behaviour, leading him to threaten to harm himself with a knife. She later returned to the flat, with Masum posting photographs of himself cradling their newborn son. But things 'got worse after the baby was born', her sister-in-law Minara Begum said. It culminated in the jealous rage which would see Masum charged with making threats to kill. Turning his tech knowhow to the most sinister use imaginable, Masum established where she had sought sanctuary via the location on her Snapchat account. On April 2 she showed her social worker a Snapchat message he had sent showing an image of the refuge. With it he had written: 'If I had any wish to kill you, I could have from the first day. 'You do not know what you have lost but one day you will understand. 'Nobody will love you like I do.' Then just over a week before the murder he had shared a video on his YouTube channel, vlogging his trip from Manchester to Barcelona. In reality the clip was part of a sinister scheme to trick Ms Akter into believing he was out of the country and that she would be safe to carry on with daily life. Her killing has left her grieving family back in Bangladesh 'completely devastated' and struggling to comprehend how she had been taken from them in such brutal fashion halfway around the world. Her cousin, Aftab Miah, told the Daily Mail that Ms Akter – the youngest of five siblings – was 'a lovely girl and had a great personality'. 'She was always smiling and liked to make people laugh.' Detective Chief Inspector Stacey Atkinson of West Yorkshire Police said: 'Kulsuma suffered a brutal attack in broad daylight whilst her baby son was in his pram. 'Masum carried out the murder then calmly walked away as if nothing had happened.' IOPC director Emily Barry said: 'This was a harrowing case which caused widespread understandable concern. 'It was appropriate we carried out a thorough investigation into the relevant contact between police and Ms Akter.'
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Wannabe influencer who slit wife's throat as she pushed their son's pram was freed to kill by courts months earlier - despite allegedly holding a knife to her throat during jealous rage
A jealous husband who stabbed his wife to death as she pushed their baby in a pram was freed to kill by a court months earlier, the Mail can reveal. Habibur Masum, 26, was yesterday found guilty of murdering wife Kulsuma Akter after she left a women's refuge where she had tried to escape his violent behaviour. But Ms Akter's fate was sealed after controlling Masum, originally from Bangladesh, was allowed back on the streets after allegedly holding a knife to her throat in a jealous rage. Despite a Crown Prosecution Service lawyer urging magistrates to keep him behind bars, he was granted bail on condition that he stayed away from Ms Akter and their Oldham home. Fearing for her life, the mother and her baby were given sanctuary at a refuge in a secret location. But wannabe influencer Masum – who had warned Ms Akter, 'I am going to murder you, and the police will be taking me' – used his technological savvy to track her down. He took advantage of her failure to switch off the location on her Snapchat account to establish she was living in Bradford. He was spotted on CCTV 'loitering, watching and waiting' near the refuge in the days leading up to the fatal attack, jurors heard. Masum even sent Ms Akter a picture of the front of the building, with a message that said: 'I know that you are living in this place. I knew from the first day you moved here.' After Masum threatened to kill her family members, Ms Akter again reported him to the police, and arrangements were put in place to rehouse her. After taunting her that he had found the refuge, Masum laid a false trail to trick her into believing he was on holiday in Spain. Thinking it was safe to take their son out among the Saturday afternoon shoppers on April 6 last year, Ms Akter – who was due to be rehomed two days later – was instead confronted by Masum. In a brazen daylight attack of barbaric ferocity, he repeatedly plunged the blade into his screaming partner, stabbing her more than 25 times before slitting her throat. After the 'cold-blooded' killing, Masum was captured on CCTV grinning as he boarded a bus to make his escape, having left his wife for dead and abandoning their baby in the street. Police launched a manhunt and Masum – who had shaved off his beard – was traced two days later after seeking treatment for 'lockjaw' 170 miles away at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire. Masum, 26, pleaded guilty to his wife's manslaughter and possession of a bladed article but denied murder on the grounds he had lost control. But yesterday a jury at Bradford Crown Court convicted him after deliberating for less than six hours. Masum tracked down his estranged wife Kulsuma before he launched 'ferocious' and lethal knife attack as she pushed their son in his pram Masum – who was also found guilty of stalking, assault and threats to kill – wiped away tears in the dock. Despite two police forces being made aware of the threats Ms Akter had been receiving, a probe by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found there had been no breach of professional standards. But campaigners said her brutal killing could have been prevented, saying the latest example of a woman murdered by her abusive partner once again underlined the need for change. 'Her death was preventable, and the loss of Kulsuma is a stark reminder of the deadly consequences of honour-based abuse and coercive control,' a spokesman for the Karma Nirvana charity said. 'We must do more to protect women like her.' Bradford West Labour MP Naz Shah said violence against women was 'a cancer that needs eradicating'. 'Kulsuma came to Bradford trying to find safety and her attacker found her,' she told the BBC. 'To keep women safe we need to change the culture of misogyny and domestic violence.' More than a year before murdering Ms Akter, Masum told a doctor he 'felt like he would kill her'. He stopped his wife from wearing make-up and would check her phone to see who she had been talking to, relatives said. Masum even stopped her drinking tea, because he didn't like the drink. Police officers in white forensics gear stand within a cordon at the scene of the stabbing in Bradford Her cousin Aftab Miah told the Mail that Ms Akter – the youngest of five siblings – was 'a lovely girl and had a great personality. She was always smiling and liked to make people laugh'. Her killing has left her grieving family in Bangladesh 'devastated' and struggling to comprehend how she had been taken from them in such brutal fashion halfway around the world. Masum will be sentenced next month.
Telegraph
a day ago
- Telegraph
Migrant on student visa murdered wife while she pushed their baby in a pram
A migrant who came to the UK on a student visa murdered his wife after tracking her to a women's refuge in Bradford. Habibur Masum, 26, stabbed Kulsuma Akter, 27, in broad daylight in April last year before walking away, leaving her 'bleeding to death in the gutter' and their seven-month-old son behind in a pram. Jurors heard the couple had met and married in Bangladesh, and came to the UK in 2022 after he obtained a student visa and enrolled on a Masters course to study marketing. The defendant, who gave evidence through a Bengali interpreter, told the trial they initially had a long-distance relationship as he lived in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, while studying and she lived in Oldham, Greater Manchester, with her brother. Masum followed Akter to the refuge in Bradford where she had been staying to escape him after he held a knife to her throat following an assault at the home they had moved to in Oldham. After finding her through her phone location, Masum was seen on CCTV in the days leading up to the fatal attack 'loitering, watching and waiting' in streets around the hostel, jurors heard. He sent her messages threatening to kill her family members if she did not return to him, before trying to lure her out by sending her fake messages from a GP practice pretending their son had an appointment and warning of 'increasingly dire consequences' if she did not attend. Bradford Crown Court heard Akter eventually felt safe enough to leave the refuge on April 6 last year after Masum updated his Facebook page, falsely claiming to be in Spain. As she was walking in the city centre with a friend, pushing her baby in a pram, Masum confronted her, the trial heard. Stephen Wood KC, prosecuting, told jurors Masum was seen on CCTV trying to steer her and the pram away before pulling a knife from his jacket and launching the 'brutal attack' when he realised she was not coming with him. CCTV footage of the attack, played during the trial, showed that Masum stabbed her at least 25 times, put her on the ground and kicked her 'as a final insult' before lifting her head and cutting her throat. Mr Wood said the 'smiling killer' then calmly walked through Bradford city centre and was seen on CCTV grinning as he got on a bus, 'believing at that point he was getting away'. Jurors heard that Masum then travelled almost 200 miles south to Aylesbury and was arrested in the early hours of April 9 in a car park near Stoke Mandeville Hospital, where he had gone to be treated for 'lockjaw'. During the trial, Masum refused to watch footage of the attack, but jurors heard that he had requested to see it during his first police interview, with Mr Wood saying he wanted to see what officers 'had on him'. When he gave evidence, Masum said he did not remember killing his wife and had taken a knife with him intending to stab himself in front of her if she did not 'listen to him'. He broke down in tears as he claimed to have 'lost control' when Akter told him there would be no shortage of people willing to replace him as a father to their son. But Mr Wood said his tears 'were as fake as his claims of self-harm' and that 'the only person Habibur Masum feels sorry for is himself'. He said antagonising Masum was 'the very last thing Kulsuma would do' as she knew what he was capable of. Mr Wood said the relationship between Masum and Akter was 'an abusive relationship characterised by his jealousy, possessiveness and controlling behaviour'. Jurors heard that in August 2022, Masum was found by police at a tram station, where he had stayed all night after an argument with Akter. He was taken to hospital where he told a doctor that 'when he fights with her, he feels like he is going to kill her'. The pair moved into a house in Oldham together in September 2022. In July 2023, Akter went to stay with her brother because of Masum's controlling behaviour, leading him to threaten to harm himself with a knife before she returned. On Nov 23 that year, he became jealous over a 'completely innocuous' message she received from a male colleague, grabbing her face, slapping her and pulling her hair. The court heard he told her: 'I am going to murder you, and the police will be taking me.' The following day, he went into their bedroom carrying a knife and held it to her throat, jurors were told. Akter's sister-in-law called the police and Masum was arrested, with Akter deciding to leave him and being moved to the Bradford refuge by Oldham social services in January last year. Masum denied the November incident and claimed Akter had fabricated a domestic violence case against him as a way to stay in the UK, while he wanted to return to Bangladesh. The court heard that while Akter was at the refuge, Masum sent her a photo of the front of the building with a message saying: 'I know that you are living in this place. I knew from the first day you moved here. 'If I had any wish to kill you, I could have from the first day. You do not know what you have lost but one day you will understand. Nobody will love you like I do.' The court heard Akter's social worker arranged for her to be rehoused and she was due to move on April 8, but in the meantime, she heard from Masum's brother that he was in Spain, and 'felt safe to leave the refuge' on the day she was killed. Masum had pleaded guilty to manslaughter but denied murder. On Friday, he was found guilty of the more serious charge, as well as one charge of assault, one count of making threats to kill and one charge of stalking. He pleaded guilty to possession of a knife in public.
Wales Online
2 days ago
- Wales Online
Man who knocked out woman with chair on Ibiza holiday revealed to be professional footballer
Man who knocked out woman with chair on Ibiza holiday revealed to be professional footballer Oldham Athletic striker Kian Harratt has been identified as the man who threw a chair at a woman during a Ibiza poolside brawl, with footage of the incident going viral on social media Oldham Athletic player Kian Harratt has been identified as the footballer who hurled a chair at a woman in Ibiza (Image:) Oldham Athletic footballer Kian Harratt has been named as the man who hurled a chair at a woman during a poolside brawl in Ibiza. The 23-year-old striker is seen throwing the chair in the direction of a middle-aged woman attempting to intervene in a fight between two groups of holidaymakers. After being struck, the woman falls to the ground, clutching her face as Harratt exits the camera's view, with the footage being widely shared on social media. Another chair was thrown, causing another person to fall into the pool. Brandon Watkins, from Nuneaton, who was among the group confronted by Harratt's friends at the Marco Polo Hotel in San Antonio, recounted the incident in a Facebook post. He wrote (via the Mirror): "Five lads came to our hotel being k***s around the pool splashing people throwing balls at women and one lad says, 'What are you looking at,' so he approaches me and I drop him. "They then start throwing chairs because they couldn't fight and everyone knows how slippy it is round a pool so [by] stopping chairs hitting us I slip in the pool and that's what went viral. "If they let me get back out the pool or got in with me then they would have been slapped again but they didn't they got kicked out... Everyone sat around the pool after was coming up to us shaking our hands and buying us drinks because the lads were b*******!" Article continues below A woman was hit by a chair as a brawl broke out around the pool Since the video went viral last weekend, the footballer has reposted it on his TikTok account. He has also shared various snaps of himself holidaying on the Spanish island. Harratt recently netted the decisive goal as Oldham sealed their return to the Football League by beating Southend in the National League play-off final at Wembley. The Pontefract-born player has had several brushes with the law in the past. Last year, while on loan at Fleetwood Town from Huddersfield Town, he was fined £1,000 by police after being caught poaching in North Yorkshire. Harratt pictured during his holiday in Ibiza In 2022, Harratt was convicted of poaching at a farm in East Yorkshire and ordered to pay a fine of £830, plus £233 costs. Two seasons ago, Harratt was hit with a four-month ban from the game while with Huddersfield after placing 484 bets on matches over a three-year period. He also received a £3,200 fine. Article continues below Thirty-six of the bets were on Huddersfield games, although he maintained that he was not part of the matchday squad for any of them. Oldham have been approached for comment.
Metro
2 days ago
- Sport
- Metro
Pro footballer knocks out woman with a chair during pool brawl at Ibiza hotel
Oldham Athletic striker Kian Harratt has been identified as the man who threw a chair at a woman during a poolside fight at a hotel in Ibiza. The 23-year-old, who scored a dramatic extra-time winner for Oldham in the National League play-off final at Wembley earlier this month, was involved in a brawl between two groups on men at the Marco Polo Hotel in San Antonio. In the footage, Harratt can be seen throwing a white chair in the direction of a group of men following an argument, however, it hit a woman who appeared to be attempting to break up the confrontation. The woman immediately hit the ground before a member of hotel staff checked on her by the pool as the fight carried on. Two more chairs were thrown during the melee, knocking one man into the pool, before more hotel staff rushed over to Harratt and ordered him to leave the area. The footage went viral on social media while Harratt reposted a clip of the fight on his TikTok account before removing it. Harratt has also liked several comments on a separate post on his TikTok account which read: 'Keep chairs down my brother' and 'my striker plz stay out of trouble now'. Brandon Watkins from Nuneaton, who was one of the men involved in the bust-up with Harratt, wrote in a post on Facebook: 'Five lads came to our hotel being nobs around the pool splashing people throwing balls at women and one lad says 'what are you looking at' so he approaches me and I drop him… they then start throwing chairs because they couldn't fight and everyone knows how slippy it is round a pool so stopping chairs hitting us I slip in the pool and that's what went viral. 'If they let me get back out the pool or got in with me then they would have been slapped again but they didn't they got kicked out. Everyone sat around the pool after was coming up to us shaking our hands and buying us drinks because the lads were bellends!' Meanwhile, another British holidaymaker, Kyle Crawford, has alleged that Harratt and three of his friends were 'being horrible' to a group of women, which led to the fight. 'There was four lads, we didn't know who they were, being horrible to some women,' he told The Sun. 'They were just in the pool splashing them and throwing balls at them – being proper immature 'Me and my mates stuck up for them and then in the end, they'd come to attack my mate.' In December, Harratt was fined over £1,153 after he was caught poaching in North Yorkshire. Last year, Harratt was also banned for four months and fined £3,200 after admitting breaking the Football Association's betting rules by placing 484 bets on matches. Harratt, who was born in Pontefract, made his professional debut with Huddersfield Town in December 2019. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Xabi Alonso reveals why Arsenal target Rodrygo was dropped from Real Madrid team MORE: Man Utd star sent warning over his future as Bryan Mbeumo transfer looms MORE: Man Utd set new transfer fee for Chelsea to sign Alejandro Garnacho
