Shivangi Sinha
In May 2021, Saqib Ayub tipped off Italian police about the disappearance of Saman Abbas. She was his girlfriend, and he told authorities that he feared her family might be involved. In the days that followed, Saman’s parents, Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen, also fled the country. After months of investigation, both were found guilty of killing their daughter, while other members of the family were also found to have been complicit in the crime. HBO Max’s ‘Saman: The Hidden Truth’ details the case. It also includes the circumstances surrounding Saman’s disappearance and the alleged motivation behind her parents’ actions against their own daughter.
Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen Discontinued Their Daughter’s Education After Middle School
Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen had spent most of their lives in Pakistan before moving to Italy with their family. In the early 2000s, Shabbar relocated to the Emilia-Romagna region in search of better work and found employment as a laborer in Novellara. After securing a home, he brought his wife and their two children, Saman Abbas and Ali Haider, to live with him. For a time, they appeared to be an ordinary family settling into life in the region. However, people familiar with the family later said in the documentary that tensions emerged as Saman began to take on aspects of the surrounding culture. Her parents reportedly expected her to follow their traditional standards more closely. In 2017, after she completed middle school, they decided to remove her from the formal education system altogether.
While Haider continued attending school, his parents reportedly arranged a marriage for Saman with one of Shabbar’s cousins. The family traveled to Pakistan, where Saman was engaged during a family gathering. After returning to Italy, however, she began exploring a different way of life. She created a social media account and eventually started speaking to a young man. Saman later decided to leave the family home and live independently, although she continued to stay in contact with her parents. According to Haider, they told her they missed her and asked her to return. When she eventually came back, he said their parents took away her personal documents, restricting her independence and limiting her ability to travel.
Shabbar and Nazia expected Saman to follow through with the engagement arranged for her in Pakistan, but she did not want to go ahead with it. In October 2020, authorities checked on Saman as her parents had initially reported her missing. During a private conversation with officers, she reportedly said that she feared for her safety, after which she was placed in a shelter and received support from social workers. Her parents continued to stay in contact with her during this period. Meanwhile, Saman met Saqib Ayub through social media, and the two began a relationship. In January 2021, Saman left the shelter to be with Saqib.
Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen Fled Italy After Saman Was Reported Missing
Saman Abbas contacted the shelter to say that her boyfriend had posted a video of them kissing online. In a clip featured in the documentary, she expressed fear over how her family might react if they saw it. Saqib’s lawyer also said in the documentary that Saman’s parents allegedly sent threats to his family in Pakistan and pressured him to end his relationship with her. On April 11, 2021, Saman returned to her family home. According to Haider, there may have been two reasons behind her decision. He said her parents had allegedly promised not to force her into marriage, while he also believed that Saman wanted to retrieve her personal documents, which remained with them.
CCTV footage featured in the documentary showed Saman seemingly interacting playfully with her family members outside their home, but there was reportedly another side to what was happening. Her parents had allegedly taken away her phone. She used Haider’s phone and at one point, she sent Saqib a photograph of her face that appeared to show bruising. She reportedly told him that she had the situation under control and was waiting for an opportunity to retrieve her documents. On April 29, 2021, CCTV cameras captured three men: Danish Hasnain, Shabbar’s brother, and Saman’s cousins Noman Ul Haq and Ikram Ijaz, walking outside with shovels and crowbars.
On the night of April 30 and into May 1, 2021, CCTV footage captured Saman leaving the house with her parents. Haider said that just before that, they had seen her messages with Saqib. Her social worker claimed that they might have believed that she had been intimate with her boyfriend based on her conversations, which escalated the risk for her. Saman did not appear to be struggling, but only minutes later, her parents returned without her. She was never seen alive again. After Saqib reported her missing, authorities went to the family’s farm and questioned those there. When they returned roughly five days later, investigators discovered that Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen had fled the country.
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The investigation increasingly focused on Shabbar Abbas and Nazia Shaheen, as well as Danish Hasnain, Noman Ul Haq, and Ikram Ijaz. Based in part on information provided by Ali Haider, detectives believed the five had conspired to kill Saman. Interpol subsequently issued a Red Notice for Shabbar’s arrest, and on November 15, 2022, Pakistani authorities arrested him. On November 27, 2022, Saman Abbas’ remains were discovered buried in an abandoned farmhouse just a short distance from her family’s home. In February 2023, Shabbar Abbas, Danish Hasnain, Noman Ul Haq, and Ikram Ijaz went on trial, while Nazia Shaheen, who remained a fugitive, was tried in absentia.
Shabbar was extradited to Italy from Pakistan in August 2023 and held in a Rome prison. In December 2023, he and Nazia were convicted of their daughter’s killing and sentenced to life imprisonment. Nazia was arrested in Pakistan in May 2024 and later extradited to Italy. The Bologna Court of Appeal upheld the parents’ life sentences in April 2025, and Italy’s Court of Cassation rejected their appeals in July 2026, leaving the sentences in place. The three other defendants were also convicted. Prosecutors alleged that Saman was killed because her relationship with Saqib was considered dishonorable to the family. Shabbar and Nazia continue to maintain their innocence.
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