Wife of man killed while helping woman tells court of his ‘compassionate heart’

The widow of father-of-two Chris Marriott, who was murdered by a driver who ran him over as he helped an injured woman, has told a court he “had a compassionate heart and loved helping, supporting and empowering others”.

Hassan Jhangur, 25, killed Mr Marriott when he ploughed his car into the middle of a wedding brawl in Sheffield just after Christmas, in 2023.

The devout Christian had stopped to help an injured woman – Jhangur’s sister – as he passed the mayhem while out on a post-Christmas walk with his family.

A number of other people were injured by the car – including off-duty midwife Alison Norris, who had also gone to help, and Jhangur’s own mother and sister.

Sheffield Crown Court heard how the defendant then got out of the Seat Ibiza and stabbed his new brother-in-law, Hasan Khan, several times.

On Thursday, Bryony Marriott wiped away tears as she read a personal statement to the court.

She said: “Chris was genuine, kind and loving.

“He was reliable, trustworthy, affectionate and gentle.”

Mrs Marriott said: “Chris was someone people felt comfortable and safe with, and was great at being a friend.”

And 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.”

Mrs Marriott said they had been married for 16 years and they thought they would grow old together.

She said he “loved being a dad, and never left me or them in any doubt of his love for us”.

She told the court: “I miss his smile and his laugh, his touch, and his wisdom and his encouragement.

“He was my best friend.”

Mrs Marriott said: “Our time as a family of four was so much shorter than we ever imagined.

“But it is my hope that Chris’s life, more than the manner of his death, has a lasting impact on me, my children, and many others.”

Mrs Marriot was speaking during Jhangur’s sentencing hearing on Thursday.

The defendant, of Whiteways Road, Sheffield, who worked as a food delivery driver, was found guilty of murder by a jury in July – a year after another set of jurors failed to reach any verdicts in his trial.

He was cleared of attempting to murder Hasan Khan, but guilty of his wounding with intent, as well as three charges of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Alison Norris, Ambreen Jhangur, Nafeesa Jhangur and the wounding with intent of Riasat Khan.

His father, Mohammed Jhangur, 57, also of Whiteways Road, Sheffield, was found guilty of perverting the course of justice after he concealed a knife.

Prosecutor Jason Pitter KC told the jury in 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.

He said that although Jhangur’s target may have been the Khan family, “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 in the Burngreave area of Sheffield on December 27 2023.

Mr Marriott, who was out with his family on a post-Christmas walk, saw Nafessa Jhangur lying in the road and decided, “fatefully”, to see whether he could help, while his wife and children returned home.

Ms Norris, who was also out walking with her partner and children, did the same thing.

The court heard Jhangur had been told about his sister being injured, and arrived at the scene in a Seat Ibiza, driving into Hasan Khan’s father, Riasat Khan, who was standing in the middle of the road talking to a 999 call operator.

The Seat then hit a group of four people in the road – Nafeesa Jhangur, Ambreen Jhangur, Ms Norris and Mr Marriott – before coming to a stop in a nearby front garden.

Mr Pitter said Jhangur got out of the car while the engine was still running and stabbed Hasan Khan multiple times to the left side of his head and to his chest, with a knife he had taken with him.

Hassan and Mohammed Jhangur are due to be sentenced on Thursday by Mr Justice Morris.