Armed with hockey sticks and baseball bats, a mob surged forward one by one, baying for blood. Footage shows their victim, 39-year-old Shamus Hussain, buckling under the weight of the first blow. Out of view of the camera, he was savagely beaten before being stabbed twice in the back, inflicting fatal injuries.
The sickening mob killing unfolded on the evening of July 12 last year at Crow Nest Park in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, which had been busy with locals enjoying warm summer weather. Following a six-week trial at Leeds Crown Court, Saqlain Ali, 22, Basit Ali, 32, Sakeb Ali Khan, 33, and Zeeshan Khan, 19, were all found guilty of murder, while two other men, Asim Akram, 21, and Faizaan Akram, 19, were convicted of manslaughter. On Monday, they were jailed for a combined total of 75 years.
The Feud Behind the Killing
The deeply disturbing CCTV footage of Mr Hussain's final moments makes one thing clear: the father of five was backing away from his attackers and posed no immediate physical threat. So what drove them to kill him with such savagery? Using court documents and local records, the Daily Mail has pieced together a timeline of events leading up to the killing. While news reports describe the spark for the attack as a 'verbal argument' that took place between Mr Hussain and three of his attackers earlier in the day, we can reveal a far longer dispute dating back well over a decade.
The feud split the small neighbourhood where it took place, leading to years of simmering hatred and resentment that finally erupted in the most horrific way possible. We begin our story on Pilgrim Drive: a short street of red brick houses just around the corner from Crow Nest Park, with a mosque at one end and a sprawling cemetery at the other. There, and on the adjoining Pilgrim Crescent, the families of the attackers, the Khans and Alis, lived alongside relatives of Shamus Hussain in uncomfortable proximity.
Escalation in 2018
Describing the background to the killing in his sentencing remarks, the trial judge described 'lasting enmity' between the Khans and Alis on one hand and the Hussains family on the other. In the summer of 2018, the feud escalated after a car reversed into the home of Shamus Hussain's sister before driving off. Convinced the Khan family were to blame, the sister called Shamus and her other brother, Basharat. Wielding knives, they strode up the driveway of the Khan's house, with Basharat waving the blade in the air and screaming threats. Witnesses described how 'all hell broke loose' as members of the Khan family rushed out of the house and clashed with the Hussains on the street before police arrived and arrested the brothers.
A year after the incident, Basharat was jailed for 13 months for possession of a bladed article in a public place and affray. Shamus received 18 months for the same knife charge and resisting a police constable in the execution of their duty. His longer sentence was likely due to his long criminal history, including nine other convictions for violent offences.
Earlier Violent Incidents
In April 2012, Shamus, Basharat and their other brother, Razacaq, beat up a man at a fish and chip shop. A court heard Shamus and Basharat were waiting outside the shop in a taxi before rushing to Razacaq's aid when he got into a fight with another customer. Shamus hit the man over the head with a bottle while Razacaq shouted encouragement. Basharat and Razacaq were handed suspended sentences, while Shamus was jailed for six months and a further three months for punching and choking his ex-girlfriend in a separate incident in December 2012. It is not clear if the chip shop fight was linked to the family feud.
Standing at six feet five inches and over 17-and-a-half stone, Shamus Hussain was described in court documents as 'intimidating' and had been prescribed anti-psychotic medication. By July 11, 2025, the day before his death, his mental condition appears to have deteriorated and he made several 999 calls complaining his head was 'fried'.
The Final Confrontation
The following evening, another confrontation took place between him and members of the Ali and Khan families that would set in course the chain of events that led to his murder. Mr Hussain was being driven along Pilgrim Drive when he passed Basit Ali, Zeeshan Khan and Sakib Khan and called them 'p*****s' before getting out of the car carrying an axe. Mr Hussain was persuaded to return to the car after several minutes, but this was not enough for the Alis and Khans, who returned to their homes and spoke to other family members to plot their revenge.
After grabbing hockey sticks and baseball bats, they leapt into two vehicles and followed Mr Hussain to Crow Nest Park before carrying out their brutal assault. CCTV shows their victim holding nothing but a t-shirt, which he had taken off because of the hot weather. Afterwards, the gang disposed of their weapons, with Zubair Khan caught on CCTV launching a hockey stick into his next-door neighbour's garden.
Unanswered Questions
The fact that the family feud led to Mr Hussain's death is not in dispute, but what is less clear is why it started. The judge alluded to this in his sentencing remarks, describing the origins of the conflict as 'lost to history'. Relatives of Mr Hussain were reluctant to provide further context when contacted by the Daily Mail, insisting they wanted to focus on the future. They did, however, express their 'disgust' at the sentences handed out to the killers, with one of the men convicted of murder, teenager Zeeshan Khan, jailed for just 10 years on account of his age.
A close family member said: 'It has been very difficult since he has gone. We had a lot of support from the police. A lot of hard work was put into it. But I don't think it is justice. I don't think it is. Taking someone's life and you get ten years. I am disgusted with the sentence.' In a statement issued on behalf of the family by West Yorkshire Police, the Hussains described Shamus as a 'much-loved son, father and brother, whose kindness, warmth and presence meant so much to those around him'. They described feeling his loss 'deeply' and missing him 'every day'.
