Mother of 'hit woman in hijab' issues stark warning to police as international manhunt continues
14 June 2024, 13:25 | Updated: 14 June 2024, 14:03
The mother of a fugitive ‘hitwoman in a hijab’ has issued a plea for her to hand herself in to authorities as they attempt to track her down, but told police she “knows how to hide”.
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Aimee Betro is accused of a failed assassination plot in the UK in which her gun jammed as she tried to carry out a revenge murder.
The 44-year-old is still at large in the US after she was hired by Mohammad Nazir, 30, and Mohammad Aslam, 56, to kill business rival Aslat Mahamud after a 2018 dispute at a jewellery store - in which the British father-and-son were left injured.
Now Ms Betro’s mother, Jeanne Johnson, has spoken out on a case which she reportedly knew nothing about until yesterday.
She said she was “shocked” after being approached by a reporter with an article showing her alleged crimes, DailyMail.com reported.
“I’ve been waiting for this day – either trouble or dead,” said Ms Johnson - who admits to having a fractured relationship with her daughter, who has been in trouble in the past.
Read more: Father and son who hired hijab-wearing female assassin for revenge killing face life sentences
Despite not having seen her in five years and being unsure of her whereabouts, Ms Johnson received a Mother’s Day card from her daughter - who she describes as “a pretty girl, very intelligent, very outgoing.”
And she sent a strong message to the authorities still pursuing her, saying: “She's not dumb. She knows how to hide.”
Milwaukee resident Betro is believed to have flown to the UK from Chicago to carry out the contract killings in September 2019.
She is alleged to have gone to Acocks Green in Birmingham after arranging to meet Sikander Ali, Mahamud’s son, purporting to be a potential buyer for the Volkswagen Golf which the family was selling.
Betro was dressed in a hijab as she “calmly” approached Ali with the gun on September 7 - but all did not go to plan.
When the 44-year-old pulled the trigger the gun reportedly jammed, giving Ali the time to flee the scene - but this did not stop her efforts.
The next morning, Betro turned up to Mahamud’s house and fired three times, before sending threatening messages telling him to “stop playing hide and seek” and asking where he was hiding.
She later sent another message which read: “You want to rip me off, you want to be a drug kingpin go look at your house. I will show you. Watch your back. I will be shedding blood soon.”
Two days later, Betro flew back to Chicago and her whereabouts are still unknown. It is unclear whether she will be extradited to the UK if caught.
Nazir and Aslam, the Derby-based father-and-son duo who hired her, were found guilty last week of conspiracy to commit murder, after flying Betro over from the US.
Prosecutor Kevin Hegarty KC described how Betro pulled up in her Mercedes before Ali arrived in an Audi: “The would-be assassin came from the driver’s side of the Mercedes.
“As she left the Mercedes she left the driver’s door open. She walked quite calmly towards Sikander Ali and was pointing 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. Mercifully and luckily for him the gun jammed.”
Mohammed Aslam, 56, and Mohammed Nazir, 30, from Derby were both found guilty of conspiracy to murder over a plot to kill a man in Birmingham.
They plotted to kill Aslat Mahamud or target a member of his family, but the plan failed.
Both men will be sentenced on August 9.
