Aftab Poonawala, accused of allegedly strangling his live-in partner Shraddha Walkar and chopping her, admitted to the crime when he was virtually produced in court on Tuesday. A Saket court extended police custody of Aftab for four days.
Aftab, who was produced before court via video conferencing, said he was 'provoked' and admitted that he killed Shraddha 'in the wake of the moment'. Aftab assured the court that he was cooperating with the probe and would provide all the details, amid allegations that he kept changing his statements. He also added that he is not able to recall many things “as it has been very long”, NDTV reported. Aftab said he has given maps of the location where he dumped the body parts, the report stated.
Legal Aid Defence Counsel Abinash Kumar, who is representing Aftab in the case, said he was cooperating with the probe.
Police had sought extended custody of Aftab as key evidence including the murder weapon are yet to be recovered. Sources said on Monday that Delhi Police recovered a human jaw during searches for Walkar's remains and approached a dentist here in a bid to ascertain whether it is of the 27-year-old murder victim. When asked how difficult it is to prove Aftab guilty, his lawyer said key evidence like the murder weapon and phones of the two are yet to be found. "Right now, police is depending on circumstantial evidence and unless the circumstantial evidence does not connect with the other evidence, a person cannot be convicted.”
The owner of a hardware shop near the Mehrauli flat where Shraddha and Aftab lived has said that the accused had purchased a hammer and saw from him. Police had on Sunday found parts of a skull and some bones in a forest area. As part of their search operation to recover more remains, a pond in South Delhi's Maidangarhi is also being drained.
The recovered human remains have been sent for forensic examination and will be matched with Shraddha's father's DNA.
