Virginia Man Charged With Murder Four Months Following His Wife’s Disappearance

MANASSAS PARK, Va.—Authorities announced on Monday that a Virginia man has been charged with murder more than four months after his wife went missing, and a significant amount of blood was discovered in their suburban Washington home.

Naresh Bhatt, 37, has been indicted by a Prince William County grand jury and now faces a murder charge along with a charge of defiling a dead body, as per online court records.

The remains of Mamta Bhatt, 28, have not yet been located. However, police have connected her DNA to the blood found within the couple’s residence, according to Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo, who spoke during a news conference on Monday evening.

“From the outset, we believed that she was a victim of homicide,” Lugo informed the media.

During their first search warrant execution, which occurred while Naresh Bhatt was home with the couple’s infant, investigators discovered blood in both the bedroom and the bathroom, Lugo stated.

Furthermore, evidence suggests that Bhatt dismembered his wife’s body, which led to the defiling charge, he added.

“I believe we have a strong case despite the absence of a body,” Lugo remarked.

Chief Public Defender Tracey Lenox has not yet responded to an email from The Associated Press requesting comments regarding the recent charges against Bhatt, who is currently in jail awaiting trial for separate allegations in this case.

The investigation has garnered worldwide attention for the small northern Virginia locality, where homicide cases are infrequent. The disappearance of Mamta Bhatt, a pediatric nurse, prompted community members and her family in Nepal to unite in their efforts to uncover what transpired.

They utilized social media, organized community events, and held a rally. Within a few days, members of the community began applying public pressure on her husband.

Three weeks following her disappearance in late July, Naresh Bhatt was charged with a felony for concealing a dead body and has remained in jail since. A prosecutor stated in a summer court hearing that the volume of blood found in the home indicated non-survivable injuries.

The inquiry into Mamta Bhatt’s death continued, but in September, Lenox, the public defender, contended that Naresh Bhatt still had the right to a speedy trial pertaining to the concealment charge. This trial is scheduled for next week.

Cases of murder without a body are not unprecedented, according to law enforcement experts. Though they can be challenging to prosecute, advancements in evidence types such as DNA, cellphone tracking, and surveillance footage have made them easier in recent years.

Tad DiBiase, a former federal prosecutor and author of the 2014 book, “No-Body Homicide Cases: A Practical Guide to Investigating, Prosecuting and Winning Cases When the Victim is Missing,” maintains a record of bodiless murder cases on his website. As of September 2, DiBiase noted an 87% conviction rate from 604 trials throughout the U.S.