Family of Chicago woman killed by estranged husband in murder-suicide sues building management

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The family of a woman who was killed by her estranged husband in a murder-suicide is suing her apartment building management and security for allowing him to gain access despite being warned about him.

Sania Khan's mother Shazia said her daughter went to great lengths to inform building management and security at her Streeterville apartment building that her estranged husband should not be allowed into the building because he was a security threat. Yet, in the summer, he was able to slip by and gain access to various floors with a building rental agent.

READ MORE: Man kills ex-wife in Streeterville after she talks about divorce on TikTok

Just a few minutes after Raheel Ahmad is seen getting off the 28th floor, police said the 36-year-old shot Khan to death before turning the gun on himself.

"Knowing that he killed her after that elevator is the hardest thing," Shazia Khan said.

Khan believes her daughter would be alive today if building management and security followed apartment building protocols.

"If they had run his name through the system, somehow they would find out he was not allowed in there and my daughter would be alive," she said.

Sania, a Pakistani-American photographer, had moved to Chicago in 2021 with then-husband Ahmad, but a few months later their relationship unraveled. Khan accused Ahmad of spousal abuse, and spent the last few months of her life sharing her story on social media hoping to give a voice to other Muslim women afraid to speak up. Sania also filed for divorce and took steps to keep Ahmad away from her apartment building.

"She personally told the management employees that under no circumstances should Ahmad be allowed in the building because again she feared for her safety," said Michael Gallagher, Khan family attorney.

But on July 18, Ahmad was allowed into the building. Video obtained by the law firm Taxman, Murray, Pollock and Bekkerman showed Ahmad entered a secure area with a rental agent without his ID being checked. According to the lawsuit filed against building management and security, Ahmad was carrying with him a garment bag containing Sania's wedding dress and a backpack with a gun. He eventually left the rental agent, made his way to Sania's apartment, broke in and killed her.

"Losing a child is the hardest thing I have gone through I have to live is that that the rest of my life because of their negligence," said Shazia Khan.

Khan said she was hesitant to file a lawsuit, but she felt it was the only way to get justice for her daughter. So far First Service Residential Illinois, the building management company, has not returned ABC7's request for a response to the legal action.