Pakistani-American photographer fatally shot by ex-husband | The Express Tribune

Pakistani-American professional photographer Sania Khan was fatally shot in Chicago by her ex-husband Raheel Ahmad on Monday.

The 29-year-old woman was found in her condominium in Streeterville, Chicago, by the police who arrived at 4:30 pm after they received a call for a welfare check. The welfare check was requested by Georgia police on Raheel Ahmad after his family reported him missing in Atlanta.

A police report cited by the Chicago Tribune stated that law enforcement agents heard a gunshot upon arrival at the scene and a man groaning.

Officers found Khan dead while her estranged husband was discovered in the bedroom with a gunshot wound to his head. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that a gun was found in his hand and a suicide note was discovered nearby.

Ahmad was subsequently transferred to Northwestern Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Read Man, woman killed in name of ‘honour’

Sania Khan was vocal about her ongoing divorce on social media and lamented the pitfalls she experienced of South Asian culture as a divorced woman.

On her TikTok account, the victim shared, “going through a divorce as a South Asian Woman feels like you failed at life sometimes. The way the community labels you, the lack of emotional support you receive, and the pressure to stay with someone because ‘what will people say’ is isolating. It makes it harder for women to leave [a] marriage that they shouldn’t have been in, to begin with.”

She furthered, “it’s painful to walk away from someone you once loved. But it’s even more painful to love someone who is careless with your heart.”

The Sun-Times reported that Khan had double-majored in psychology and women’s studies as she launched her photography career on the side.

“She could make a friend out of anyone and would always be there for them during their moments,” a friend of Khan told the Chicago based editorial. “You would be hard pressed to find anyone who would say something bad about Sania because just knowing Sania added so much light to your life.”