A killer who mowed down a Good Samaritan father as he stopped to help a woman lying injured in the street has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 26 years.
Hassan Jhangur, 25, used his car as a weapon to plough into Chris Marriott, 46, as the devoted Christian came to the aid of a woman during a violent family brawl in Sheffield just after Christmas 2023.
Mr Marriott, who had been walking with his wife and children when he came across the chaos, was helping Jhangur’s sister – who had been knocked unconscious – when the killer sped into the crowd in his Seat Ibiza, striking multiple people before crashing into a garden wall.
Sheffield Crown Court heard how, after fatally injuring Mr Marriott, Jhangur got out of the vehicle and stabbed his new brother-in-law, Hasan Khan, several times in the head and chest.
He also seriously injured off-duty midwife Alison Norris, who had gone to help, as well as his own mother and sister.
Mr Marriott was pronounced dead at the scene after emergency services managed to lift the car from his body.
His widow, Bryony Marriott, wept as she read an emotional statement to the court, describing her husband as ‘genuine, kind and loving.’
Hassan Jhangur has been found guilty of murdering a man who sought to break up a family brawl two days after Christmas
Father-of-two Mr Marriott had stopped to help Jhangur’s sister when the killer drove his Seat Ibiza through a crowd – fatally striking him
‘Chris was someone people felt comfortable and safe with, and was great at being a friend,’ she said.
‘Chris was a man of faith, and his love for God and for people shone through in what he devoted his time to. He had a compassionate heart and loved helping, supporting and empowering others.’
She told the court the couple had been married for 16 years and had planned to ‘grow old together’.
‘He loved being a dad, and never left me or them in any doubt of his love for us,’ she said. ‘I miss his smile and his laugh, his touch, and his wisdom and his encouragement. He was my best friend.’
After an 18-hour deliberation, jurors convicted Jhangur of murder by majority verdict.
He had admitted causing death by dangerous driving but denied both murder and manslaughter.
He was also found guilty of grievous bodily harm against Mr Khan, Ms Norris, and his mother and sister.
Mr Marriott pictured with his wife Bryony, who was walking with her husband when he was fatally mown down
Hassan Jhangur pictured in December 2023, days after he ran down and killed Mr Marriott
Richard Thyne KC, defending, had sought to claim that Jhangur’s actions, while ‘terrible’, were ‘neither murder nor manslaughter’.
The killer’s father, Mohammed Jhangur, 57, of Whiteways Road, Sheffield, was found guilty of a charge of perverting the course of justice after stashing the knife his son had used in the boot of his car moments after the attack.
Prosecutor Jason Pitter KC told the jury at the opening of the trial that Jhangur was guilty of murder because he intended ‘at the very least to cause really serious harm’ when he used his car as a weapon.
Although Jhangur’s target may have been the Khan family, the prosecutor said ‘the law says your intentions can be transferred from one person to another, even if he did not intend to hit that particular person’.
Mr Pitter said the ‘public spirit’ of Mr Marriott and Ms Norris ‘brought them unwittingly into the midst of a family dispute’, which had spilled out into the street.
The brawl came about after tensions boiled over following the wedding of Jhangur’s sister Amaani and her new husband Hasan Khan.
Disagreements had broken out over the timing and location of the wedding, and led to Amaani falling out with her own mother and sisters. None of the Jhangurs ultimately attended the ceremony.
Footage of Jhangur’s father Mohammed being arrested by police. The elder Jhangur was found guilty of perverting the course of justice after concealing a knife
But Ambreen and Nafeesa later turned up at the Khan family home in College Court, leading to an ‘unpleasant’ argument and a sudden episode of violence that saw the newlywed bride rendered unconscious in the street.
‘Fatefully,’ the trial was told, Mr Marriott tried to help alongside off-duty midwife Ms Norris – just as Jhangur arrived at the scene in a Seat Ibiza.
CCTV footage played to the jury showed Jhangur running out to the hatchback and climbing in before driving to College Close. He did not appear to slow for speed bumps in the road as he approached them in the car.
Spotting his new father-in-law Hasan Khan, who was standing in the middle of the road phoning 999, Jhangur drove straight into him.
He then kept moving forward, colliding with his mother, his sister, Ms Norris and Mr Marriott before coming to a halt in a front garden with Mr Marriott trapped underneath.
Jhangur then left from the car and stabbed his new brother-in-law multiple times in the head and chest.
By the time emergency service workers were able to roll the car off of his body, he showed no signs of life.
