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A WANTED man has been arrested abroad in connection with the murder of police officer Sharon Beshenivsky who was shot dead on duty almost 15 years ago.

Paul Beshenivsky, the officer's husband at the time, spoke to the T&A yesterday and welcomed the development saying it will provide some closure.

But he admitted his children will be suffering due to the case being brought back into the spotlight.

Sharon Beshenivsky was killed on November 18, 2005, while responding to a bungled armed robbery at Universal Travel in Morley Street, Bradford.

The 38-year-old mother of three, with two stepchildren, was a probationer and had only worked in the role for nine months when she was fatally shot.

She was only the second policewoman to be killed on duty in the UK and it came on her youngest daughter Lydia's fourth birthday.

West Yorkshire Police announced yesterday that 71-year-old Piran Ditta Khan - a former bouncer - was arrested on Monday in Pakistan, on suspicion of murder.

Mr Beshenivsky said: "From my view, it will give me a bit of closure – when something is still happening in your mind and periodically you get told from police that they’re still looking for him, which is great, but you’ve not forgotten about it – might have got him, might not have got him.

"I heard about it yesterday and I was told it was 90 per cent that it was him.

"This morning, today, they confirmed that it is him and he's being held in custody in Pakistan."

Mr Khan appeared in an Islamabad court on Wednesday where his extradition was discussed.

Mr Beshenivsky said: "It could take another week or two to extradite him.

"At last they’ve got him.

"It’s 2005 to now to get him."

While an arrest after such a long time comes with a sense of relief, the family will still have to relive some painful memories in the aftermath.

Mr Beshenivsky said: "There will be a court case and it will all be coming to light again.

"That brings it all back to light, especially with the kids.

"My daughter just rang me about it and she told me about it.

"Obviously it’s not very nice. You try to get on with your life.

"It doesn’t give you total closure, like now it just goes through your mind and the kids are going to be suffering.

"I’m having to deal with it.

"I’ve remarried, but you’re never going to forget.

"It’s a bit like Groundhog Day.”

When asked what message Mr Beshenivsky would give to Mr Khan, he said he wouldn’t know how to put it into words.

Sharon Beshenivsky's colleague, PC Teresa Millburn, was also shot back in 2005.

But she survived and later gave evidence at the trial of members of the armed gang who were charged with being involved in the murder.

Six men were later jailed at Newcastle Crown Court, but Mr Khan, a former bouncer who was suspected of being the gang organiser, had fled abroad.

In 2016, West Yorkshire Police issued a fresh appeal for find him as he remained at large despite a £20,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.

The horrifying shooting sent "shockwaves" throughout the county and the world, according to the Chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Federation, Brian Booth.

But he said the arrest, after a hunt for justice across two decades, has delighted the force.

Mr Booth added: "The persistence to capture and bring to justice all those involved in the murder of PC Sharon Beshenivsky has to be applauded.

"I know my colleagues within West Yorkshire are delighted to hear about the arrest of Piran Dhitta Khan - and will now be watching closely the wheels of justice turning in this case - and how this plays out.

"The murder of Sharon and the attempted murder of her colleague PC Teresa Milburn sent a shockwave not only through West Yorkshire but throughout the world.

"We still mourn the loss of Sharon and I wish to pass on my thanks, on behalf of my West Yorkshire colleagues, to the National Crime Agency in Pakistan for making this arrest possible."

Detective Superintendent Mark Swift also echoed Mr Booth's words.

He added: "We are continuing to liaise with partners in Pakistan to process Khan's extradition with the intention of returning him to the UK to face court proceedings."