Aftab Amin Poonawalla, the accused in the gruesome murder of his live-in partner Shraddha Walkar, told police that he was inspired by Dexter, an American crime TV series, to destroy the evidence of the crime he had committed. He also claimed that he had googled method of blood cleaning and read about human anatomy so that it could help him in chopping off the body.
The harrowing tale of betrayal and subterfuge was revealed during the interrogation of the 28-year-old man who was arrested by Delhi Police on Monday—six months after the murder took place—based on a complaint filed by the woman's father. Aftab allegedly strangled his partner and sawed her body into 35 pieces which he kept in a 300-litre fridge for almost three weeks at his residence in South Delhi's Mehrauli before dumping them across the city over several days.
"Aftab watched a series Dexter to destroy evidence and he chopped her body parts into 35 pieces and disposed them in the nearby jungle slowly,” Former Delhi Police ACP Ved Bhushan said.
Police said 13 body parts were found after the accused pinpointed the areas where he had thrown them, but only after their forensic examination, it can be confirmed if they belong to the victim.
The accused, a trained chef, not only bought a refrigerator to preserve the body parts but also stocked incense sticks and room fresheners to suppress the foul smell emanating from the corpse. After the murder, he even allegedly interacted with Shraddha's friends using her social media accounts for a few weeks so as to not arouse any suspicion.
He also used to sleep in the same room where he had chopped the body after killing Shraddha.
Sources told ANI that Aftab had relationship with many girls even before he met Shraddha. He also watched many crime movies and web series, including the American crime drama series Dexter.
The accused has been remanded in police custody for four days and a case under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of an offence committed) has been registered against him at Mehrauli police station.
What we know so far
- Aftab and Shraddha, both residents of Mumbai, met on a dating site and fell in love. Since their families objected to their relationship, the couple moved to Delhi where they started living in a rented apartment in May this year.
- Soon after the duo shifted to Delhi, Shraddha started pressurizing him to marry her.
- On May 18, the couple had an altercation over their marriage, which escalated and Aftab strangled her to death
- The accused cut her body into over 35 pieces, kept them in a refrigerator and disposed them in different parts of Delhi's Mehrauli forest over several days.
- In September, a friend of Shraddha informed her family that there was no contact with her for the last two-and-a-half months and her mobile number was switched off.
- Following this, Shraddha's father called up Aftab but was told that the couple had parted ways sometime back. Shraddha's family also found her social media accounts inactive for quite some time.
- In November, Shraddha's father filed a missing complaint with Mumbai Police.
- During the initial investigation, her last location was found in Delhi and on the basis of this, the case was transferred to Delhi Police.
- Aftab was arrested on Monday and during the interrogation, he confessed to the crime.
