By Kevin Spak 
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Tag Archives: Urooj Khan
Brother of poisoned lottery winner says he pushed authorities to probe death
The brother of a Chicago man poisoned with cyanide shortly after winning the lottery said Monday he is the family member who asked authorities to reconsider the initial finding that his sibling had died of natural causes.
Imtiaz Kahn said he had nightmares about his brother before his death and that his suspicions about the death lead him to push coroner’s officials to conduct more test. Urooj Khan, 46, died July 20 as he was about to collect his $425,000 in Illinois State Lottery winnings.
Imtiaz Khan said Monday in a telephone interview that he began demanding more tests be conducted immediately after coroner’s officials said his brother had died of natural causes.
Further tests revealed in November that Urooj Khan had been poisoned. His body was exhumed in January for more testing.
Khan’s widow, Shabana Ansari, and other relatives have denied any role in his death and expressed a desire to learn the truth.
Urooj Khan had moved to the U.S. from his home in Hyderabad, India, in 1989, setting up several dry cleaning businesses and buying into some real estate investments.
Despite having foresworn gambling after making the haj pilgrimage to Mecca in 2010, Khan bought a lottery ticket in June. He said winning the lottery meant everything to him and that he planned to use his winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and donate to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
He was just days from receiving his winnings when he died before dawn July 20.
The night before, Khan ate dinner with his wife, daughter and father-in-law at their house. Sometime that night, Khan awoke feeling ill. He died the next morning at a hospital.
Khan died without a will, opening the door to a court battle. The businessman’s widow and siblings fought for months over his estate, including the lottery check.
Wife Due Most of Poisoned Lotto Winner's Estate: Lawyer
By Matt Cantor 
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Unsolved Murder of Chicago Lottery Winner Sparks Family Feud
By Danielle and Andy Mayoras, Contributor Chicago businessman Urooj Khan jumped for joy when he learned he had the winning numbers for a million-dollar lottery drawing last summer. Too bad he never had a chance to enjoy it. He was murdered days before he was going to receive the $425,000 lump-sum, after-tax winnings.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
Body of Chicago lottery winner exhumed for autopsy
The body of a Chicago man who was poisoned with cyanide after winning the lottery was exhumed Friday for an autopsy that authorities hope will help solve the mystery surrounding his death.
A black hearse escorted by four police cars carried away the body of Urooj Khan from a cemetery on the city’s North Side around 9 a.m., and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office was expected to perform the autopsy immediately, spokeswoman Mary Paleologos said.
She said examiners will take blood, tissue, bone, hair and nail samples. They’ll also examine the lungs, liver, spleen and contents of the stomach and intestines. Paleologos said tests on Khan’s organs also may determine whether the poison was swallowed, inhaled or injected.
The autopsy was expected to be finished by Friday afternoon, though it will take two to three weeks to get test results, she said.
Khan, 46, died in July as he was about to collect $425,000 in lottery winnings. His death initially was ruled a result of natural causes. But a relative asked for further tests that revealed in November that he had been poisoned.
Khan’s wife, Shaana Ansari, and other relatives have denied any role in his death and expressed a desire to learn the truth.
Authorities remain tightlipped about whom they may suspect.
At dawn on Friday, a backhoe at Rosehill Cemetery began scooping up dark clumps of ground hardened by the cold weather. Two men then finished the work with shovels, and a Muslim cleric said prayers beside Khan’s grave. His body was placed in a white bag and loaded into a hearse.
One of Khan’s brothers was present, along with officials from the medical examiner’s office and Chicago police detectives.
Police kept about half a dozen TV news crews at a distance, beyond the cemetery’s fence, and two news helicopters circled overhead.
Khan had come to the U.S. from his home in Hyderabad, India, in 1989, setting up several dry-cleaning businesses and buying into some real-estate investments.
Despite having foresworn gambling after making the haj pilgrimage to Mecca in 2010, Khan bought a ticket in June. He jumped “two feet in the air” and shouted, “I hit a million,” he recalled at a lottery ceremony later that month.
He said winning the lottery meant everything to him and that he planned to use his winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and donate to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
He was just days from receiving his winnings when he died before dawn on July 20.
The night before, Khan ate dinner with his wife, daughter and father-in-law in their house in Chicago’s North Side neighborhood of West Rogers Park, home to many immigrants from India and Pakistan.
Sometime that night, Khan awoke feeling ill and collapsed as he tried to get up from a chair, his wife has said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
With no outward sign of trauma and no initial suspicions, authorities performed only a basic toxicology screening and an external exam of Khan’s body in July. They determined that he died of natural causes, as a result of a narrowing and hardening of coronary arteries.
But a concerned relative — whose identity remains a mystery — came forward days later with suspicions and asked authorities to look deeper. They then carried out a full toxicology screening on fluids that had been drawn from the body and found a lethal amount of cyanide in his blood, leading the medical examiner in November to reclassify the death a homicide.
Exhuming the body will allow authorities to conduct an autopsy and, depending on the condition of the remains, to gather more data that could be presented in court if the case goes to trial. It could also provide important clues about how the cyanide entered his body.
Medical Examiner Stephen Cina was to hold a press conference Friday afternoon to give details on the condition of the body and how much testing they were able to do.
Khan was given a religious burial and his body was not embalmed.
His body is to be reburied Monday.
Khan died without a will, opening the door to a court battle. The businessman’s widow and siblings fought for months over his estate, including the lottery check.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Autopsy's Goal: How Did Lotto Winner Ingest Poison?
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Exhumation set for poisoned Chicago lottery winner
Authorities plan to exhume the body of a Chicago businessman Friday in hopes of learning exactly how he ingested a lethal dose of cyanide.
Urooj Khan died in July as he was about to collect $425,000 in lottery winnings. His death was initially ruled a result of natural causes, but a relative pressed for a deeper look. Full toxicology results revealed in November that Khan was poisoned. His death was reclassified a homicide.
No suspects have been identified.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office hopes an autopsy, expected to be finished by Friday afternoon, will produce more evidence in the event the case goes to trial.
Spokeswoman Mary Paleologos says tests on the 46-year-old Khan’s organs also may determine whether the poison was swallowed, inhaled or injected.
Last week, facing dozens of reporters crowded around her outside court after a judge signed off on the request, Khan’s sister said the thought of her brother’s body being unearthed and reexamined was disturbing — but essential.
“It’s very hard,” a tearful Marez Khan said. “I wanted my brother to rest in peace, but we have to have justice served.” She added about the exhumation, “It has to be done.”
Khan’s July 20 death was initially ruled a result of natural causes. But a relative asked authorities to look deeper, triggering more exams that led to the conclusion in November that the businessman was intentionally poisoned.
A comprehensive autopsy initially wasn’t performed because there were no outward signs of physical trauma and it was thought he died of cardiac arrests, the state’s attorney’s motion said.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the exhumation will happen. The motion said the body wasn’t embalmed, which would preserve the body longer, and so the exhumation needed to happen soon before further decomposition.
Police have released few details about the investigation; they have not announced any suspects or a possible motive or said which relative asked for the more thorough inquiry.
The man’s wife, Shabana Ansari, has said she can’t believe her husband had any enemies and that she was not involved in his death.
One of Ansari’s lawyers said before Friday’s hearing that she doesn’t oppose the exhumation. But Al-Haroon Husain said Ansari wants to ensure Islamic religious practices are adhered to, though he didn’t elaborate.
Al-Haroon Husain said he would also ask authorities to carefully document the exhumation and autopsy, including by taking photographs, to ensure the procedures are carried out properly.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Poisoned lotto winner's body to be exhumed Friday
Authorities plan to exhume the body of a Chicago businessman Friday in hopes of learning exactly how he ingested a lethal dose of cyanide.
Urooj Khan died in July as he was about to collect $425,000 in lottery winnings. His death was initially ruled a result of natural causes, but a relative pressed for a deeper look. Full toxicology results revealed in November that Khan was poisoned. His death was reclassified a homicide.
No suspects have been identified.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office hopes an autopsy, expected to be finished by Friday afternoon, will produce more evidence in the event the case goes to trial.
Spokeswoman Mary Paleologos says tests on Khan’s organs also may determine whether the poison was swallowed, inhaled or injected.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Family quarrels add intrigue to lotto winner death
In the week since news surfaced that a Chicago man was poisoned to death with cyanide just before he was to collect a lottery payout, surprising details about his convoluted family saga have trickled out daily.
Urooj Khan‘s widow and siblings fought for months over the businessman’s estate, including the lottery check. His father-in-law owed tens of thousands of dollars in taxes. His 17-year-old daughter from a previous marriage had moved out of her stepmom’s home and into his sister’s after his death. Then his ex-wife came forward, announcing in anguish that she hadn’t seen her daughter in more than a decade and hadn’t even known she was still in the U.S.
The slowly emerging family backstory and ever-expanding cast of characters have added layers of intrigue to a baffling case in which authorities have revealed little and everyone is wondering: Whodunit?
The victim’s relatives hint at family squabbles. And Khan’s wife, Shabana Ansari, has endured clutches of reporters outside the family home and business, asking even whether it was a lamb or beef curry dinner she made for Khan on the night he died.
“She’s just as curious as anyone else to get to the bottom of what caused her husband’s death,” said Al-Haroon Husain, who is representing Ansari in the case that will divide up Khan’s estate, including the $425,000 in lottery winnings.
Ansari and other relatives have denied any role in his death and expressed a desire to learn the truth.
Authorities remain tightlipped about who they may suspect. In the coming weeks, they plan to exhume the 46-year-old Indian immigrant’s body, which might allow investigators to determine exactly how he was poisoned and to gather more evidence for any possible trial.
Khan seemed to be living the American dream. He had come to the U.S. from his home in Hyderabad, India, in 1989, setting up several dry-cleaning businesses and buying into some real-estate investments.
Despite having foresworn gambling after a pilgrimage to Mecca in 2010, Khan bought a ticket in June. He jumped “two feet in the air” and shouted, “I hit a million,” he recalled at a lottery ceremony later that month.
He said winning the lottery meant everything to him and that he planned to use his winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and donate to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
He was just days from receiving his winnings when he died before dawn on July 20.
The night before, Khan ate dinner with his wife, daughter and father-in-law in their house in Chicago’s North Side neighborhood of West Rogers Park, home to many immigrants from India and Pakistan.
Sometime that night, Khan awoke feeling ill and collapsed as he tried to get up from a chair, his wife has said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
“I was shattered. I can’t believe he’s no longer with me,” a tearful Ansari, 32, told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday.
With no outward sign of trauma, authorities initially determined Khan died of natural causes. But a concerned relative — whose identity remains a mystery — came forward with suspicions and asked authorities to take a closer look.
Further toxicology tests found a lethal amount of cyanide in his blood, leading the medical examiner in November to reclassify the death a homicide. The Chicago Tribune first reported the story Monday, and reporters descended on one of the family’s dry-cleaning businesses.
The revelations followed, instilling the family tragedy with soap opera-like suspense that even attracted reporters from overseas.
Khan died without a will, opening the door to a court battle.
Under Illinois law, the money should be divided evenly between his wife and daughter, but Husain says the man’s three siblings kept asking whether they had rights to the money. In their filings, Khan’s siblings accused Ansari of trying to cash the lottery check and expressed concern his daughter would not get her fair share.
A judge has made Ansari the administrator until a ruling on how to divide the assets.
Khan’s sister, Meraj Khan, and her husband, Mohammed Zaman, told reporters Friday that they had no suspicions before the fuller toxicology results showed cyanide poisoning.
Zaman then added yet another puzzling wrinkle: Ansari is a vegetarian and therefore would not have eaten the lamb curry she prepared for her husband the night he fell ill. Ansari has repeatedly said she, Khan, her father and Khan’s daughter all ate the same meal.
Authorities have not said how they think Khan ingested the cyanide, which can be swallowed, inhaled or injected.
Detectives questioned Ansari for more than four hours at a police station in November and searched the family home.
Around the same time, Ansari’s stepdaughter, Jasmeen, decided to go live with Khan’s sister, who had won guardianship of the teen.
“Of course she was upset,” Husain said of Ansari’s reaction. “At the same time, I think she wants to move forward with her life. … With her stepchild, her in-laws, she doesn’t want to really have anything to do with them. There’s some great animosities between the two.”
And then there’s Ansari’s father. A few months before Khan’s death, two federal tax liens were filed against his father-in-law, Fareedun Ansari. He owed $124,600, according to the Cook County Recorder of Deeds.
Finally, Khan’s ex-wife and Jasmeen’s mother emerged. Now remarried, living in South Bend, Ind., and going by the name of Maria Jones, she told the Chicago Sun-Times she last saw her daughter 13 years ago, when she says Khan took the girl to India. The distraught woman said she didn’t know the girl was in the U.S. and she hoped to reconnect with her.
“I don’t know if she knows I’m still alive,” she told the newspaper, sobbing during a phone interview. “I thought she was in India all these years.”
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Poisoned Lottery Winner's Family Full of Drama
By Neal Colgrass 
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Poisoned Lotto Winner's Wife Made Him Last Meal
By Mark Russell 
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Judge approves exhumation of lottery winner's body
A judge Friday granted prosecutors permission to exhume the body of a Chicago lottery winner who was fatally poisoned with cyanide just as he was about to collect his $425,000 payout.
Authorities want to do a fuller autopsy on Urooj Khan to confirm earlier but less thorough toxicology tests, as well as to rule out that natural causes contributed to the 46-year-old’s sudden death, according to documents filed with the motion for an exhumation.
Facing dozens of reporters crowded around her outside court after a judge signed off on the request, Khan’s sister said the thought of her brother’s body being unearthed and reexamined was disturbing — but essential.
“It’s very hard,” a tearful Marez Khan said. “I wanted my brother to rest in peace, but we have to have justice served.” She added about the exhumation, “It has to be done.”
Khan’s July 20 death was initially ruled a result of natural causes. But a relative asked authorities to look deeper, triggering more exams that led to the conclusion in November that the businessman was intentionally poisoned.
Cook County’s Medical Examiner’s Office didn’t initially perform a comprehensive autopsy because there were no outward signs of physical trauma and it was thought he died of cardiac arrests, the state’s attorney’s motion said.
It wasn’t immediately clear when the exhumation will happen. The motion said the body wasn’t embalmed, which would preserve the body longer, and so the exhumation needed to happen soon before further decomposition.
Police have released few details about the investigation; they have not announced any suspects or a possible motive or said which relative asked for the more thorough inquiry.
The man’s wife, Shabana Ansari, has said she can’t believe her husband had any enemies and that she was not involved in his death.
One of Ansari’s lawyers said before Friday’s hearing that she doesn’t oppose the exhumation. But Al-Haroon Husain said Ansari wants to ensure Islamic religious practices are adhered to, though he didn’t elaborate.
Al-Haroon Husain said he would also ask authorities to carefully document the exhumation and autopsy, including by taking photographs, to ensure the procedures are carried out properly.
___
Follow Michael Tarm at www.twitter.com/mtarm
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Poisoned lottery winner's family reportedly didn't share his last meal
As relatives of a $1 million lottery winner who was killed with cyanide battle over his estate, sources say it appears the man’s family did not share what could have been his fatal last meal.
A police source tells MyFoxChicago.com that the night Urooj Khan died he was home with his wife, Shabbana Ansari, 17-year-old daughter, and father-in-law Fareedun Ansari.
The source says Ansari prepared a traditional Indian meal for dinner, which Khan ate. Neither Ansari or Khan’s daughter ate the meal.
Khan then became violently ill and was rushed to a local hospital, where he later died.
The revelation comes as court documents revealed Ansari has battled with Khan’s siblings over control of his estate, including his $425,000 prize money.
Khan, who owned several dry cleaning operations and some real estate, died just days before he would have collected his winnings.
Authorities initially ruled he died of natural causes, but a relative came forward with suspicions that prompted a fuller examination that led to the startling conclusion that he was intentionally poisoned.
The probate court documents shed no light on the circumstances of Khan’s death, but they do add a layer of drama to an already baffling case. As they work to unravel the mystery, police, prosecutors and the medical examiner have revealed little, naming no suspects and declining to say if the lottery win might have presented a motive.
In another development Wednesday, a lawyer for Ansari said Chicago police detectives questioned her in November for more than four hours at a police station and executed a search warrant on the two-story home where she lived with Khan.
Attorney Steven Kozicki said Ansari maintains she had nothing to do with the death of her 46-year-old husband and he has no indication that investigators might be looking at her as a potential suspect.
“In any case where a husband dies in that manner, sure they’re going to talk to the spouse,” he said. “That’s what they’ve done. … I believe that she had nothing to do with his death. She vehemently says that she had nothing to do with his death.”
The fact that Khan died without a will opened the door to the legal tussle over his estate, which his wife says amounts to more than $1.2 million, including the prize money, his share of the dry-cleaning businesses and real estate, as well as several vehicles and a bank account.
Under Illinois law, Khan’s estate would be split between his wife and daughter.
However, Khan’s brother Imtiaz and sister Meraj Khan expressed concern in court filings that Khan’s daughter might not get her fair share. The siblings, who live in the Chicago area, are not staking a claim to any of the money for themselves. They initially won an order from a probate judge in September to freeze the lottery check, asserting his widow tried to cash it.
Meraj Khan is also seeking to become the legal guardian of the teen, who lives with Ansari.
Ultimately, the probate judge granted Ansari’s competing request to administer the estate but has yet to decide how to divide the assets, including the lottery payout. The assets remain held up by the court proceedings, and Ansari denies removing any of the assets.
Ansari’s probate attorney could not be reached for comment, and the lawyer representing Khan’s siblings declined to discuss the case. Imtiaz Khan also did not return a phone message.
The next status hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24.
Ansari spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday at one of the dry cleaning businesses her husband started. Ansari would not talk about the circumstances of her husband’s death, saying it was too painful to recall. She said only that he fell ill shortly after they ate dinner together.
She said she cannot believe her husband had enemies and she has no idea which family member asked authorities to take a deeper look into his death. Authorities have refused to identify the relative.
Khan had planned to use his lottery winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and make a donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Ansari and Khan were both born in the southern India city of Hyderabad and immigrated to the United States as adults.
Khan bought his winning instant lottery ticket in June at a convenience store near his home. It was a $1 million winner, but he opted for a lump sum. After taxes, it amounted to about $425,000, according to the Illinois Lottery.
Click for more from MyFoxChicago.com.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Poisoned Lotto Winner's Family Fighting Over Check
By Kevin Spak 
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Newser – Home
Documents show battle over poisoned lottery winner's estate
The widow a Chicago lottery winner who authorities say was poisoned with cyanide has battled with his siblings over control of his estate, including his $425,000 prize money, court documents show.
Urooj Khan, who owned several dry cleaning operations and some real estate, died suddenly on July 20, just days before he was to collect his winnings from the Illinois Lottery. With no signs of trauma, authorities initially ruled he died of natural causes, but a relative came forward with suspicions that prompted a fuller examination that led to the startling conclusion that he was intentionally poisoned.
The probate court documents, reviewed by The Associated Press on Wednesday, shed no light on the circumstances of Khan’s death, but they do add a layer of drama to an already baffling case. As they work to unravel the mystery, police, prosecutors and the medical examiner have revealed little, naming no suspects and declining to say if the lottery win might have presented a motive.
In another development Wednesday, a lawyer for the man’s widow, Shabana Ansari, said Chicago police detectives questioned her in November for more than four hours at a police station and executed a search warrant on the two-story home where she lived with Khan.
Attorney Steven Kozicki said Ansari maintains she had nothing to do with the death of her 46-year-old husband and he has no indication that investigators might be looking at her as a potential suspect.
“In any case where a husband dies in that manner, sure they’re going to talk to the spouse,” he said. “That’s what they’ve done. … I believe that she had nothing to do with his death. She vehemently says that she had nothing to do with his death.”
The fact that Khan died without a will opened the door to the legal tussle over his estate, which his wife says amounts to more than $1.2 million, including the prize money, his share of the dry-cleaning businesses and real estate, as well as several vehicles and a bank account.
Under Illinois law, Khan’s estate would be split between his wife and 17-year-old daughter from a previous marriage.
However, Khan’s brother Imtiaz and sister Meraj Khan expressed concern in court filings that Khan’s daughter might not get her fair share. The siblings, who live in the Chicago area, are not staking a claim to any of the money for themselves. They initially won an order from a probate judge in September to freeze the lottery check, asserting his widow tried to cash it.
Meraj Khan is also seeking to become the legal guardian of the teen, who lives with Ansari.
Ultimately, the probate judge granted Ansari’s competing request to administer the estate but has yet to decide how to divide the assets, including the lottery payout. The assets remain held up by the court proceedings, and Ansari denies removing any of the assets.
Ansari’s probate attorney could not be reached for comment, and the lawyer representing Khan’s siblings declined to discuss the case. Imtiaz Khan also did not return a phone message.
The next status hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24.
Ansari spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday at one of the dry cleaning businesses her husband started. Ansari would not talk about the circumstances of her husband’s death, saying it was too painful to recall. She said only that he fell ill shortly after they ate dinner together.
She said she cannot believe her husband had enemies and she has no idea which family member asked authorities to take a deeper look into his death. Authorities have refused to identify the relative.
Khan had planned to use his lottery winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and make a donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Ansari and Khan were both born in the southern India city of Hyderabad and immigrated to the United States as adults.
Khan bought his winning instant lottery ticket in June at a convenience store near his home. It was a $1 million winner, but he opted for a lump sum. After taxes, it amounted to about $425,000, according to the Illinois Lottery.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Documents show battle over lottery winner's estate
The widow a Chicago lottery winner who authorities say was poisoned with cyanide has battled with his siblings over control of his estate, including his $425,000 prize money, court documents show.
Urooj Khan, who owned several dry cleaning operations and some real estate, died suddenly on July 20, just days before he was to collect his winnings from the Illinois Lottery. With no signs of trauma, authorities initially ruled he died of natural causes, but a relative came forward with suspicions that prompted a fuller examination that led to the startling conclusion that he was intentionally poisoned.
The probate court documents, reviewed by The Associated Press on Wednesday, shed no light on the circumstances of Khan’s death, but they do add a layer of drama to an already baffling case. As they work to unravel the mystery, police, prosecutors and the medical examiner have revealed little, naming no suspects and declining to say if the lottery win might have presented a motive.
In another development Wednesday, a lawyer for the man’s widow, Shabana Ansari, said Chicago police detectives questioned her in November for more than four hours at a police station and executed a search warrant on the two-story home where she lived with Khan.
Attorney Steven Kozicki said Ansari maintains she had nothing to do with the death of her 46-year-old husband and he has no indication that investigators might be looking at her as a potential suspect.
“In any case where a husband dies in that manner, sure they’re going to talk to the spouse,” he said. “That’s what they’ve done. … I believe that she had nothing to do with his death. She vehemently says that she had nothing to do with his death.”
The fact that Khan died without a will opened the door to the legal tussle over his estate, which his wife says amounts to more than $1.2 million, including the prize money, his share of the dry-cleaning businesses and real estate, as well as several vehicles and a bank account.
Khan’s brother Imtiaz and sister Meraj Khan, who also live in the Chicago area, initially won an order from a probate judge in September to freeze the lottery check, asserting his widow tried to cash it. They expressed concern in court filings that Khan’s 17-year-old daughter from a previous marriage might not get her fair share, though they are not staking a claim to any of the money for themselves.
Meraj Khan is also seeking to become the legal guardian of the teen, who lives with Ansari.
Ultimately, the probate judge granted Ansari’s competing request to administer the estate but has yet to decide how to divide the assets, including the lottery payout. The assets remain held up by the court proceedings, and Ansari denies removing any of the assets.
Ansari’s probate attorney could not be reached for comment, and the lawyer representing Khan’s siblings declined to discuss the case. Imtiaz Khan also did not return a phone message.
The next status hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24.
Ansari spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday at one of the dry cleaning businesses her husband started. Ansari would not talk about the circumstances of her husband’s death, saying it was too painful to recall. She said only that he fell ill shortly after they ate dinner together.
She said she cannot believe her husband had enemies and she has no idea which family member asked authorities to take a deeper look into his death. Authorities have refused to identify the relative.
Khan had planned to use his lottery winnings to pay off mortgages, expand his business and make a donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Ansari and Khan were both born in the southern India city of Hyderabad and immigrated to the United States as adults.
Khan bought his winning instant lottery ticket in June at a convenience store near his home. It was a $1 million winner, but he opted for a lump sum. After taxes, it amounted to about $425,000, according to the Illinois Lottery.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Wife says poisoned lottery winner had no enemies, as authorities prepare to exhume his body
A Chicago medical examiner says he plans to exhume the body of a lottery winner poisoned with a lethal dose of cyanide.
Cook County Medical Examiner Stephen Cina said Tuesday that paperwork is being prepared for a judge to approve and he hopes to exhume Urooj Khan‘s body in the next few weeks.
Khan’s death on July 20 was initially ruled a result of natural causes. But a relative’s request for a deeper look resulted in the startling conclusion months later that Kahn was killed with the highly toxic poison as he was about to collect $425,000 in winnings.
Cina says exhuming the body could allow for more tests that could be presented in court if the case goes to trial.
Khan’s wife said Tuesday she was devastated by his death and cannot believe her husband could have had enemies.
Shabana Ansari spoke to The Associated Press a day after news emerged that Urooj Khan, 46, died from cyanide poisoning in July. Prosecutors, Chicago police and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office are investigating Khan’s death as a homicide, but they have not given any details or announced any suspects.
Ansari would not talk about the circumstances of her husband’s death, saying it was too painful to recall. She described Khan as a hard-working and generous man who would send money to orphanages in their native India.
“I was shattered. I can’t believe he’s no longer with me,” said the short, soft-spoken Ansari, standing in one of three dry-cleaning businesses her husband started after immigrating to the U.S. from India in 1989.
“I don’t think anyone would have a bad eye for him or that he had any enemy,” said Ansari, adding that she continues to work at the dry cleaner out of a desire to honor her husband and the businesses he built.
Chicago police Superintendent Garry McCarthy told reporters Tuesday that he had never seen anything like Khan’s case in his 32 years of policing in New York, New Jersey and now Chicago.
“So, I’m not going to say that I’ve seen everything,” McCarthy said.
Authorities plan to exhume Khan’s body in the next few weeks in hopes they might be able to test additional tissue samples and bolster evidence if the case goes to trial.
“It’s always good if and when the case goes to trial to have as much data as possible,” said Cook County Medical Examiner Stephen Cina. He added that he did not believe additional testing would change the conclusion that Khan was a homicide victim, saying those comprehensive toxicology results were validated in the lab.
“Based on the investigative information we have now and the (toxicology results), we’re comfortable where we are right now,” he said.
Khan and his wife were born in Hyderabad, India, and their story is a typical immigrant’s tale of settling in a new land with big dreams and starting a business. Their 17-year-old daughter, Jasmeen, is a student here.
“Work was his passion,” Ansari said, adding that she plans to stay in the U.S. and keep his businesses running.
“I’m just taking care of his hard work,” she said.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News