Leeds husband threatened to pin sister-in-law's murder on his wife in £50,000 blackmail bid
He demanded she remortgage the marital home
A twisted taxi driver who turned to drug dealing tried to extort his own wife by threatening to pin a murder on her.
Safdar Pervez demanded £50,000 from the terrified woman, as well as controlling her through violence.
The 53-year-old is already a serving prisoner, having been jailed last year for being part of a major drug-dealing empire.
He was given a new jail sentence this week at Leeds Crown Court to run consecutively, meaning he will spend even longer behind bars.
Pervez was married to the victim for more than 24 years and she “suffered a litany of abuse”, as he regularly slapped and punched her.
The court heard he even attacked her when she was heavily pregnant.
Prosecutor Andrew Espley said Pervez dictated what she wore, where she went and with whom she met.
When she was out, he would frequently call her and demand to know where she was and he would check her phone every day.
They split in 2018, but he moved back into the family home to spend time with their children.
It was later found that he had a gambling problem and spent more than £6,700 in a casino over a six-month period.
Then in April 2024 he demanded £50,000 from the woman, telling her to remortgage the family home.
He said that if she didn’t, he would tell police that she was involved in the murder of his brother’s wife, despite his brother being jailed for the killing.
Pervez, formerly of Easterly Road, Leeds, later admitted coercive control and blackmail.
He appeared in court this week over a video link from HMP Lindholme, where he is serving an 11-year sentence for being part of a major drugs gang.
As a taxi driver, he transported quantities of cocaine around the country.
Mitigating for his latest offences, Matthew Stewart said Pervez accepted responsibility for the offences.
Addressing the blackmail, he said he had put a significant amount of money into renovating the property, but accepted it was “completely the wrong way to go about” getting that back.
Judge Robin Mairs gave him a new 28-month sentence, added on to his existing 11-year sentence.
He was given a restraining order of indefinite length to keep him away from his former wife.