Two months after woman's death, Thane man held for killing her to evade marriage pressure

Police have arrested a 32yearold brick supplier in connection with the murder of a woman whose charred body was discovered in Navi Mumbai nearly two months ago Investigators allege that the accused killed the woman after she repeatedly pressured him to marry her and then attempted to destroy evidence by setting the body on fire reported PTIThe arrest comes after an extensive investigation involving technical surveillance analysis of call records and crossverification of missing persons reports officials said on Tuesday reported PTICharred body found in Navi Mumbai in AprilThe case began on April 11 when a severely decomposed and burnt body of an unidentified woman was found near the ChinchvaliWakdi village boundary in Panvel taluka of Navi Mumbai reported PTIAccording to Deputy Commissioner of Police Rashmi Nandedkar investigators initially faced significant challenges as there were no identity documents or immediate clues at the scene that could help establish the victims identity reported PTIPolice circulated details of jewellery recovered from the body through the Criminal Investigation Department CID network and examined CCTV footage from multiple locations Technical intelligence and other investigative leads were also pursued in an effort to identify the victim and trace those responsibleMissing person report helps crack the caseA breakthrough came when a police constable compared details from the investigation with a missing person complaint registered at the Shil Daighar police station in Thane districtThe jewellery found on the body including rings a nose pin and earrings matched the description provided in the missing person report Investigators also found similarities in the physical appearance of the deceased and the missing woman reported PTIThe victim was subsequently identified as 30yearold Anitadevi Bhagwan RajbharFurther investigation revealed that Rajbhar had been in frequent contact with Karan Namdev Patil a resident of Phadkepada in Shilphata who worked as a brick supplier reported PTICall records lead investigators to suspectPolice said call data records showed regular communication between Rajbhar and Patil before her disappearanceAccording to officials Patil failed to respond to initial police summons raising suspicion among investigators After being detained for questioning he allegedly confessed to the crime reported PTIPolice claim the accused and the victim were known to each other and that Rajbhar had been urging Patil to marry herAccused allegedly killed victim and burnt bodyInvestigators allege that Patil decided to eliminate Rajbhar to avoid the pressure to marry herOn April 6 he allegedly persuaded her to accompany him in his car before driving to a secluded location Police said he then attacked her with an iron rod causing fatal injuriesAfter the murder Patil allegedly transported the body to the Chinchvali area in Panvel and attempted to erase evidence by pouring petrol and setting the body on fire reported PTIOfficials said the accused used fuel taken from his own vehicle to burn the remainsAccused remanded to police custodyPatil was arrested on June 8 and produced before a court which remanded him to police custody until June 12He has been booked under provisions related to murder and destruction of evidencePolice said further investigation is underway to establish the complete sequence of events and gather additional evidence in support of the charges filed against the accusedWith inputs from PTI