THE daughter of PC Sharon Beshenivsky says she hopes to “really find peace” when the mastermind behind the armed robbery that led to the death of her mother is sentenced.

Piran Ditta Khan was convicted last month of murder and firearms offences, almost two decades after the Keighley police officer was killed while interrupting a raid at family-run Universal Express travel agents in Bradford, in November, 2005.

She and her colleague, PC Teresa Milburn, who were both unarmed, were shot at point-blank range by one of the three men who had just carried out the robbery as he emerged from the door of the business.

Khan was the last of seven men involved in the robbery to be convicted.

PC Beshenivsky’s daughter, Lydia, says there will be “relief” when Khan is sentenced.

“There’s relief that he’s actually going to be behind bars but that doesn’t fix the hole in my heart," she said.

“However, on the day of the sentencing, I will be glad to see the back of them.

“With everything that was going on, we couldn’t find the words to put on mum's headstone. But hopefully, after all this is finished, we will get a headstone and really find some peace.”

PC Beshenivsky died on Lydia's fourth birthday, and Lydia says she usually spends her birthday in Bradford at her mother’s memorial.

“My dad was waiting for her to come home like everybody else that day," she says. "A car pulled up at the top of the drive, and I actually thought that it was my mum coming home.

“The party went on; they just wanted to keep me busy, I think, keep it going. To be honest, every other birthday since, it’s been about my birthday, not about the death.

"But I still find it hard to this day to celebrate my birthday.

“I normally go down to Bradford with the police at the memorial and spend my time there.”

Ms Beshenivsky says her hobby of working with horses has helped her through the loss of her mother.

“I found myself a hobby that I enjoyed – which is working with the horses – and that took me away from being pulled down and drained by everything. I mean, I was in this tunnel of darkness for years.

“I had every obstacle thrown at me that I had to jump over.”

Khan’s sentencing is due this month.