A MAN whose estranged wife was stabbed to death at her home has been arrested on suspicion of her murder.

Zameer Ahmed, 26, was detained in Blackburn yesterday evening and was due to be questioned by detectives today.

His estranged wife Nazia, 23, died after being stabbed at her home in Shear Bank Road, Blackburn, on June 17.

Her sister Shazia, 20, was also seriously injured.

Police have been searching for Zameer Ahmed and believed he may have left the area following the incident.

He was arrested at around 5pm and spent the night in cells at Greenbank police station before he was due to be interviewed today.

The man leading the investigation, Det Supt Mick Gradwell said: "I can confirm that Zameer Ahmed has been arrested on suspicion of murdering his estranged wife Nazia and is due to be interviewed today."

The arrest follows a nine-day hunt for the murder suspect, who works as a chef at the Shahi Qila restaurant, also on Shear Bank Road, and who lives in the same street as the women's family.

Ahmed moved to the UK from Pakistan after the couple's arranged marriage in 2002 but the pair split soon afterwards.

Officers found the weapon believed to have been used in the attack a kitchen knife close to the scene.

The arrest came just three days after Nazia's funeral.

More than 1,000 mourners attended the ceremony as the former Blackburn College student's body was finally laid to rest.

Her family's wish to follow the Muslim tradition of burying the dead as soon as possible was held up for almost a week by the need for two post mortem examinations as part of the police inquiry.

But the family finally received permission for the burial during last Friday's prayers at Randal Street mosque.

Muslim leaders and the victim's 24-year-old brother Waseem Ahmed had made public pleas for Ahmed to give himself up.

Shazia, 20, has been released from hospital after surgery for stab wounds to her hand and body.