Shraddha Walkar murder: Poonawalla taken to forest, 10 samples recovered
In a significant development in the Shraddha Walkar murder case, the Delhi Police took the accused—her live-in partner Aftab Ameen Poonawalla—to the Mehrauli forest, where he had disposed of her chopped body parts. Reportedly, the police retrieved at least 10 samples of suspected human remains from the forest, which will now be matched with Walkar's DNA to confirm whether they are her body parts.
Why does this story matter?
- On Saturday, the Delhi Police arrested Poonawalla for Walkar's murder in May. He chopped up her body into 35 pieces and disposed of them in the forest.
- Walkar and Poonawalla reportedly met each other on a dating app while working in Mumbai.
- After a few of years of their relationship, they moved to Delhi as the deceased's parents disapproved of their interfaith relationship.
Search is on for remaining body parts: Police
"Around 10 samples of remains suspected to be of a human recovered, picked up by forensic experts, and are being sent to confirm if they're all human remains. They'll be sent to match with DNA samples of her father," Delhi Police sources told ANI.
Walkar's father demands death penalty for Poonawalla
On Tuesday, Walkar's father—Vikas Madan Walkar—demanded the death penalty for 28-year-old Poonawalla, while indicating a "love jihad" angle. Walkar's family filed a missing report in Mumbai in May. Last week, her father visited the couple's rented house in Delhi's Chhatarpur Pahadi, but it was locked. Later, the Delhi Police and the Mumbai Police joined hands, a kidnapping case was filed, and Poonawalla was arrested.
Here's how Poonawalla killed Walker
Reportedly, the couple had gotten into a fight on May 18 as Walkar wanted to get married. She reportedly started shouting and Poonawalla, in an attempt to restrain her so that the neighbors didn't hear anything, ended up strangulating her. After her death, Poonawalla chopped the body with a saw and used potpourri and room fresheners to hide the stench of the corpse.
Poonawalla visited Mehrauli forest every night
After chopping her body, Poonawalla used to visit the Mehrauli forest every night for 18-20 days to dispose of her body parts one by one. Even though she had stopped speaking to her family, Walkar still used to post photos on Facebook, from where the victim's family inferred her whereabouts. However, her family grew suspicious when she did not post anything for a few weeks.
Poonawalla kept cold drinks next to Walkar's chopped head
Poonawalla's internet search history showed that he looked up human anatomy to chop Walkar's body. The Delhi Police said he ground her intestines to keema and used to keep cold drinks next to her severed head in a fridge he brought after the murder. It was also learned that Poonawalla even used to look at her face after storing the head in the fridge.
He invited dates to house after killing Walkar
Poonawalla reportedly met several women via a dating app days after killing Walkar and also brought them over to his rented Delhi house while the victim's body parts were stuffed in the fridge. During the police interrogation, Poonawalla also revealed that he was inspired by Dexter, an American TV series where a psychopath lives a double life, said reports.
