Bengaluru News: The dismembered body of a 29-year-old woman from Jharkhand was found stashed in a refrigerator in a flat in Bengaluru’s Vyalikaval area on Saturday.
The body was first discovered by the landlord of the victim who had entered the flat to find out the source of the foul stench that had been pervading the neighbourhood for over two days.
The woman has been identified as Mahalakshmi, the wife of Hemant Das, who used to live alone in the flat. The police have recovered 30 pieces from the 165-litre refrigerator.
The neighbours initially thought the foul smell was coming from the house because of rotten food.
They informed Jayaram, the owner of the flat who lives in the same building, after the stench became unbearable, reported The Indian Express.
The flat was locked from the outside. He entered the flat despite the overbearing stench and opened the fridge in which he found dry blood and the dismembered body. He informed the police.
Her husband lives separately with their daughter. The police are questioning him.
The victim had moved to the flat five months ago after domestic discord with Hemant Das.
The police say the woman was murdered around four to five days ago.
Her mobile was switched off on September 12.
Additional Commissioner of Police (West Zone) N Satheesh Kumar said, “A woman’s body was found chopped into pieces and stored in a fridge at a house within the Vyalikaval police station limits. It appeared to have been done 4-5 days ago. The body has been identified. The probe is going on. We will give more information after the investigation. She was settled in Karnataka but is originally from another state,” Kumar told reporters.
The incident was a stark reminder of the brutal murder of Shraddha Walker by her live-in partner Aftab Poonawalla in 2022.
Aftab Poonawala allegedly strangled Walkar and sawed her body into 35 pieces. He kept them in a fridge for three weeks.