Team interrogating 19-year-old woman and her 16-year-old boyfriend for musician's murder say duo failed to separate head from torso and that hunt is on for two more suitcases.
Bennett Rebello
The killers of 59-year-old musician Bennett Rebello had watched multiple videos online to learn the tricks of disposing of his body without leaving any clue, said sources privy to the investigation. Rebello's adopted daughter and her boyfriend allegedly used heated choppers to cut him into eight separate pieces, three of which have been located.
The duo panicked after killing Rebello. After discussing for a while, Rebello's adopted daughter looked for a wise method online: 'how to dispose of a body'. Later, they bought four choppers, heated the sharp-edged weapons on a kitchen stove and dismembered Rebello's body," a crime branch officer told mid-day. "While chopping the body, Aradhiya Patil alias Riya Rebello, 19, and her 16-year-old boyfriend covered their faces with a piece of cloth to fend off the smell of burning skin and flesh," the officer said.
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Aaradhiya Patil
Deputy Commissioner of Police Shahaji Umap, said, "Rebello's body was chopped into eight pieces. We have collected three, search for remaining five is underway." Incidentally, the musician had put the following post on Facebook on April 28: "Twenty Seventh was a bad day, we were two, me and my to be adopted daughter RIA PATIL. At 1.30 night, some body tapped my door, me went down three young boys age twenty four pushed me, gave knock started breaking things around they went to the first floor and took three kg coins, filled their bag, came down and started breaking precious crystal glasses took three guitars a aqua green child's, guitar and two jimm box guitars and a yamaha keyboard, they tied kerchiefs on nose and mouth then pushed me. me fell and fled. (sic)" Senior Police Inspector of Vakola police said that they will have to check their files to see if Rebello approached them. Crime Branch officials have not contacted Vakola police in this matter.
Sources at Crime Branch's Unit V said, "The killers first chopped Rebello's private parts and then chopped each of his legs into two pieces before dismembering both the hands by his arms. The duo could not muster their courage to behead him." It took them three days to finish. "They would spend all day chopping and in the evening, they would hire an auto-rickshaw and dispose a suitcase containing body parts. One of the three such suitcases was thrown from BKC into the Mithi River and the same is believed to have washed ashore near Mahim," the officer said.
"The other two suitcases were dumped into the river from Vakola bridge. We are yet to trace those," added the officer, who further said that they are verifying claims of buying choppers and looking for the shop the suitcases were purchased from. Meanwhile, Unit V's Senior Police Inspector Jagdish Sail said, "We are conducting a spot panchanama and collecting evidence." The source at crime branch added, "The female accused was taken to different spots from where the suitcases were thrown." Investigating teams are also scanning CCTV footage to trace the registration numbers of auto-rickshaws hired by the duo. "We are also questioning auto-rickshaw drivers who generally ply in Santacruz," the source added.
Nov 27
Day Bennet Rebello was allegedly murdered
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