A district and sessions court in Islamabad has sentenced Umar Hayat to death in the high-profile murder case of social media influencer Sana Yousaf, along with an additional prison term and fine.
The verdict was announced by Additional District and Sessions Judge Afzal Majoka, who also handed down a 10-year imprisonment sentence and imposed a fine of Rs200,000 on the convict.
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The courtroom proceedings were attended by the parents of the deceased, while the prosecution and the victim’s legal counsel were also present during the announcement of the judgment.
According to the prosecution, the case was supported by testimony from 27 witnesses, presenting what it described as a strong evidentiary chain linking the accused to the crime.
EXCLUSIVE: After Umar Hayat was sentenced to death by court in the Sana Yousaf murder case, Sana’s mother said, Sana is no longer with us, but seeing all the girls working makes me happy. Now, after justice for Sana, the girls whose parents had previously kept them away from the… pic.twitter.com/2uhagCzwg5
— P Connect (@ConnectingPak) May 19, 2026
Prosecutor Raja Naveed Hussain argued before the court that Umar Hayat was arrested a day after the killing and was identified through an identification parade conducted during the investigation.
The court was informed that medical evidence from Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) confirmed that Sana Yousaf suffered fatal injuries, with gunshot wounds causing severe damage to her heart and lungs.
The prosecution further stated that digital evidence played a key role in the investigation, including mobile phone records, chat data and location tracking allegedly linking the accused to the victim.
Investigators also recovered communication records between the accused and the victim, strengthening the prosecution’s claim of prior contact.
The victim’s mobile phone was recovered during the investigation and later identified by her father at a police storeroom, according to court proceedings.
The prosecution maintained that all available evidence, including forensic and digital material, confirmed the intent to kill and established the accused’s involvement beyond doubt.
Counsel for the victim’s family urged the court to impose the maximum penalty, arguing that the brutality of the crime warranted strict punishment.
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The court had earlier reserved its verdict after completion of final arguments from both sides before announcing the decision on Monday.
The case has drawn significant public attention due to the victim’s social media profile and the severity of the charges involved.