Chandigarh, Jun 17 (PTI) Days after the body of a Haryana-based model was recovered from a canal in Sonipat, her male friend whom she knew for past few years has been arrested, police on Tuesday said.
Sheetal, 24, was found with her throat slit and injuries in other parts of the body on Sunday.
A car was also recovered from the canal.
Sunil, the suspect, has been arrested, Panipat Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Satish Kumar said over the phone. He allegedly pushed the car into the canal, got himself admitted to a hospital. He also told police that he managed to swim to safety and allegedly tried to pass it off as an accident.
Sunil has been taken on police remand.
Sheetal's body was recovered from the canal in Sonipat's Kharkhoda which was later identified by the family.
The DSP said that Sheetal alias Simmi and Sunil allegedly had an altercation before she was killed. She had been missing since Saturday.
Sheetal, who worked as a model making music videos, had gone to Ahar village in Panipat for some shoot on Saturday.
Sheetal and Sunil travelled together in the accused's car later that evening, police said.
The DSP said that Sheetal received a call from some person and started talking to him.
This upset Sunil, who had in the past also objected to her talking to that man, he added.
The DSP said that they got into an argument after this and Sunil took out a knife, which he had kept in his car and stabbed her inflicting injuries to her neck and chest.
The two also had an argument earlier when Sheetal had discovered that Sunil was married and had hid the fact from her, said the DSP, adding this issue had led to arguments in the past as well.
Sheetal had also made a call to her sister with whom she lived in Panipat, telling her that Sunil was "beating" her, police said.
However, the family later could not reach her as her phone was switched off. They approached police with a missing person's complaint.
"Whether Sunil is the lone accused or not or did he have any accomplice in the crime will be known when we question him thoroughly during the police remand. Going by the fact that he already had a knife in his car, we cannot rule out whether he had pre-planned to kill her," the DSP said.