Saman Abbas murder case: Family members sentenced to life imprisonment

The legal proceedings regarding the murder of Saman Abbas, an 18-year-old Pakistani woman living in Italy, have reached a significant milestone. Following an appeal process concluded on April 18, 2025, several family members received life sentences for her death.

Saman Abbas was killed between April 30 and May 1, 2021, after resisting a forced marriage arranged by her family with an older cousin. Although she had previously sought protection from Italian social services and law enforcement, she returned to her home in Novellara to retrieve her passport and residency documents. Her body was later discovered near an abandoned farmhouse.

The appellate court handed down life sentences to her parents, Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen, as well as to her cousins, Ikram Ijaz and Noman Hulaq. The cousins, who had been acquitted in the first instance, are now imprisoned in Reggio Emilia. Additionally, her uncle, Danish Hasnain, saw his sentence increased from 14 to 22 years.