Saw found at flat, could hold vital clue: Sleuths

NEW DELHI: Police found a saw from the rented Chhattarpur flat of Aaftab Amin Poonawala, who is accused of murdering his girlfriend and hacking her body into 35 pieces, an officer aware of the probe said on Thursday, marking a potential breakthrough in the macabre case that has shocked the country but yielded little hard evidence yet.

The officer cited above said the saw was recovered from Poonawala’s first-floor flat four to five days ago and was sent for forensic examination because investigators suspect that it could be the weapon with which the 28-year-old allegedly dismembered his partner’s body after killing her.

“Police found a saw in his house during the search following his interrogation. For now, it cannot be confirmed if this is the weapon he used in the crime until it is scientifically examined by forensic experts,” said the officer cited above, requesting anonymity.

A second officer aware of developments said Poonawala told police that he strangled his partner, Shraddha Walkar, in a fit of rage on the evening of May 18 after a fight over their moving to Delhi from Maharashtra. No public statement has been made so far

by the accused, who is in custody.

The gruesome murder was unearthed on Monday after Poonawala ostensibly told the police that he murdered Shraddha Walkar six months ago, chopped her body into at least 35 pieces for over two days, stored them in a refrigerator for about three months, and dumped the body parts piece by piece in different parts of south Delhi. Police later said that the couple fought over finances on May 18 — three days after they moved into the flat in Chhattarpur.

But other than his confession and a series of circumstantial clues, the police investigation has not thrown up major pieces of evidence. Investigators recovered 13

bone fragments from nearby forests and found some bloodstains in the flat but are yet to conclusively prove that they belong to Walkar, 27.

This is why the recovery of the saw may become important, said the officer quoted above.

If forensic examination proves that this is indeed the weapon used to hack Walkar’s body, it will be the first real piece of evidence in the case. Any murder investigation stands on two prongs — the recovery of the murder weapon and the body — because confessions made to police are not admissible in a court of law unless backed by corroborative evidence.