A Virginia man has been charged with homicide greater than 4 months after his spouse disappeared and a considerable quantity of blood was discovered of their suburban Washington residence, authorities introduced Monday.
Naresh Bhatt, 37, was indicted by a Prince William County grand jury and faces a cost of homicide in addition to a rely of defiling a lifeless physique, in line with on-line court docket paperwork.
The physique of Mamta Bhatt, 28, has not been discovered. But investigators linked her DNA to the blood discovered within the couple’s residence, Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo stated Monday night at a information convention.
“From the start, we believed that she was murdered,” Lugo informed reporters.
Investigators carried out their first search warrant when Naresh Bhatt was residence with the couple’s child and found blood within the bed room in addition to the toilet, Lugo stated.
He added that proof exhibits that Bhatt minimize up his spouse’s physique, which prompted the defiling cost.
“I really feel we’ve a powerful case for not having the physique,” Lugo stated.
Police additionally stated that his conflicting statements, to police, the media and the general public raised purple flags, CBS affiliate WUSA-TV reported.
“We stood again and listened and that was one of many issues. We attempt to see what he was saying to the general public and that is not what he was telling us was happening,” stated Chief Lugo.
Chief Public Defender Tracey Lenox didn’t instantly reply to an e mail from The Associated Press in search of touch upon the brand new fees in opposition to Bhatt, who’s already in jail awaiting trial on separate fees within the case.
The investigation has drawn worldwide consideration to the small northern Virginia group, the place murder instances are uncommon. The disappearance of Mamta Bhatt, a pediatric nurse, spurred group members and her household in Nepal to band collectively to attempt to determine what occurred.
They posted on social media, hosted group occasions and held a rally. Within days, group members started to use public stress on her husband.
Three weeks after her disappearance in late July, Naresh Bhatt was charged with a felony rely of concealing a lifeless physique and positioned in jail, the place he stays. A prosecutor had stated in court docket over the summer season that the quantity of blood discovered within the residence indicated accidents that weren’t survivable.
Olivia Diaz / AP
The investigation continued in Mamta Bhatt’s dying. But in September, Lenox, the general public defender, argued that Naresh Bhatt was nonetheless entitled to a speedy trial on the rely of concealing a lifeless physique. The trial on that cost was scheduled for subsequent week.
Bodiless homicide instances should not extraordinary, in line with regulation enforcement consultants. And whereas they will nonetheless be tough to prosecute, they’ve grow to be simpler in recent times due to new forms of proof, equivalent to DNA, cellphone location info and surveillance cameras.
Tad DiBiase is a former federal prosecutor and writer of the 2014 e book, “No-Body Homicide Cases: A Practical Guide to Investigating, Prosecuting and Winning Cases When the Victim is Missing.”
He retains a tally of bodiless homicide trials on his web site. As of September 2, DiBiase famous that there was an 87% conviction charge after 604 trials throughout the U.S.
“Searches ─ we have executed over 10. We’ve executed grid searches ─ searches with K9s,” Lugo beforehand informed WUSA-TV. “In phrases of search warrants and subpoenas, I believe we’re pushing most likely 30 that we’ve submitted and obtained info on.”
