Navi Mumbai Crime: Man Held for Killing 17-Year-Old Niece Over Broken Marriage Promise

Taloja police have arrested a 44-year-old tailor from Ulhasnagar, identified as Mohammad Ayub Shahid Mistry, for the brutal murder of his 17-year-old niece, Tamanna Shaikh, at her residence in Cidco’s Asawari Grahasankul housing complex, Sector 27, Taloja Phase-2, on Friday afternoon.

Police said the victim was alone at home when Mistry attacked her, striking her head with a cooker and stabbing her neck with a kitchen knife before fleeing. Her mother, Asminabibi Shaikh (35), who works as a domestic cook, discovered her daughter in a pool of blood upon returning around 4:45 pm and alerted authorities. Forensic experts later recovered the blood-stained cooker and knife from the crime scene.

ACP (Crime) Ajay Landge said that initial investigations provided no direct witness to the murder. CCTV footage from the building showed a man in a raincoat leaving the premises, but his face was obscured. Relatives, however, identified Mistry by his body language. Six police teams were then deployed, and within 12 hours, PI Sagar Nikam’s team traced and apprehended Mistry at a Taloja bus stop while he attempted to flee to Ulhasnagar.

During interrogation, Mistry confessed to the crime. He revealed that years ago, an understanding had been made between his wife and her sister that their children — if born as a boy and a girl — would marry once they grew up. While Mistry’s son was proposed to Tamanna, her mother later rejected the idea due to monetary disputes and began considering other suitors. Police said the rejection caused severe distress to Mistry’s son. Angered by the broken promise, Mistry confronted Tamanna when she was alone and fatally attacked her after she refused the marriage proposal.