Man jailed for Murdering Girlfriend in ‘Merciless’ Attack

Raj Sidpara has been jailed for life after he punched, kicked and stamped on his girlfriend in a “merciless” attack before going to sleep and leaving her to die.

The 50-year-old was found guilty of murdering Tarnjeet Riaz at his home in Leicester in the early hours of May 6, 2024, after initially telling police she had fallen over drunk.

Sidpara continued his attack sometime after 1:50 am while she was on the floor of his bedroom, lying face up and “defenceless”.

Judge William Harbage told Sidpara: “You then took your bloodied shoes off, went to bed and then slept until morning.”

By then Ms Riaz – also known by her maiden name Chagger – was dead.

Sidpara called 999 at about midday and was told over the phone how to administer CPR but Leicester Crown Court heard Ms Riaz was already “cold”.

CCTV footage from a bar before the attack showed Sidpara apparently angry at his girlfriend, who was “unstable” on her feet.

It was heard Sidpara was “irritated by her drunkenness”.

The attack left Ms Riaz with “two enormous black eyes”, bleeding on the brain and 20 rib fractures, among other injuries.

In a police interview, Sidpara claimed his girlfriend had a “drinking problem and had fallen over”.

The court heard it was apparent Sidpara was “prone to outbursts of anger” but it was unclear what had triggered his attack.

Judge Harbage said: “You have steadfastly refused to explain what you did or why.”

The judge was sure Sidpara’s claims that he had no memory of what happened were “false”, adding that he was able to recollect other events that night.

He added: “What’s clear is that you attacked her in a savage and merciless way.

“You punched, kicked and stamped on her in a sustained attack.”

Sidpara, who was diagnosed with an alcohol dependence syndrome, later pleaded guilty to manslaughter but denied murder.

However, he was convicted of murder.

The judge said:

“Your conspicuous lack of remorse at any stage was quite remarkable.”

The court heard Sidpara had an “established pattern of violence”, with several convictions for attacking previous partners.

In 2022, he was convicted of assaulting a former partner, who he had headbutted and threatened to petrol bomb her house.

In a statement read out on behalf of Ms Riaz’s brother Balraj Chagger, he said that if it was not his sister whose life was taken, “it would have been someone else”.

He said: “All Taz wanted was to be loved and she gave 1,000%.”

Mr Chagger said his mother regretted “welcoming this monster into our family”.

He added: “She wanted to live a life filled with love, joy and purpose. She deserved every bit of that future.”

Sidpara received a life sentence with a minimum term of 20 years and 162 days.