Washington DC [US], August 24 : The husband of a 28-year-old Nepali American who has gone missing for more than three weeks has been charged in connection with her disappearance, police said.
Mamta Kafle Bhatt was last seen in public July 27 and spoke to a friend the next day, according to the Manassas Park Police Department (MPPD). She was then last seen by her husband, Naresh Bhatt, on July 31, and was reported missing by her husband August 5.
Evidence of pooling blood and missing knives were among the chilling details presented in court Friday as the husband of the missing woman faced a charge of concealing a dead body.
The development has come as a shock for those who were hoping to find 28-year-old Mamta alive nearly a month after she was last seen by anybody except her husband.
However, investigators have not called off the search for the mother of an 11-month-old who missed her baby's first birthday this week. The couple's daughter was placed in the care of the Department of Social Services following Naresh Bhatt's arrest, police said.
MPPD said Naresh Bhatt was arrested Thursday at his family home and was charged with concea
Prosecutors said there is evidence of pooling blood in the primary bedroom of the home, then blood and blood splatter in the primary bathroom. They said investigators found indications that a body was dragged.
While laying out its case, the prosecution said Naresh Bhatt changed his story numerous times about when he last saw his wife. Police say they have video showing Naresh Bhatt at a Walmart purchasing cleaning supplies.He also went to a Walmart in Prince William County and purchased a set of knives. Two of those knives are now missing, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said there's evidence that Naresh Bhatt was in the process of packing up his home and selling his car. Passports for Bhatt and his daughter were in full view when police entered the home for a search.
Seeking justice for Kafle Bhatt "is going to be a marathon," Holly Wirth, a friend and former coworker of Kafle Bhatt's, said outside the courthouse after the hearing.
"What we heard was worse than we could have ever imagined. I have to give credit to the Commonwealth attorneys. She spoke as frankly as she could. But the details are absolutely shocking," Wirth added.
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