Poonawala started dating weeks after the murder: Police | Latest News Delhi - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Poonawala started dating weeks after the murder: Police

By, New Delhi
Nov 16, 2022 06:05 AM IST

On May 18, Poonawala, 28, allegedly strangled Walkar, 27, to death at their flat in Chhattarpur Pahadi, dismembered her body into 35 pieces, and stored the pieces in a refrigerator, before disposing of the body parts over three months, Delhi Police officers have said, citing Poonawala’s disclosure statement.

Days after Aaftab Amin Poonawala purportedly disposed of the last body part of his former girlfriend Shraddha Walkar after allegedly murdering her and dismembering her body, he started dating again and brought at least one woman back to his south Delhi flat, police officers aware of the matter said.

New Delhi, Nov 15 (ANI): Delhi Police brings the accused Aftab Amin Poonawalla in the Shraddha Walker murder case to the jungle area to recover other body parts disposed off by the accused, in New Delhi on Tuesday. So far, the police have recovered around 12 suspected body parts during the investigation. (ANI Photo) (ANI)
New Delhi, Nov 15 (ANI): Delhi Police brings the accused Aftab Amin Poonawalla in the Shraddha Walker murder case to the jungle area to recover other body parts disposed off by the accused, in New Delhi on Tuesday. So far, the police have recovered around 12 suspected body parts during the investigation. (ANI Photo) (ANI)

On May 18, Poonawala, 28, allegedly strangled Walkar, 27, to death at their flat in Chhattarpur Pahadi, dismembered her body into 35 pieces, and stored the pieces in a refrigerator, before disposing of the body parts over three months, Delhi Police officers have said, citing Poonawala’s disclosure statement.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

After he managed to dispose of the body, sometime in late August or early September, he started befriending women on the dating app Bumble -- the same app on which he said he first met Walkar -- and brought at least one date back to the flat in Chhattarpur, Poonawalla said in his confession.

To be sure, Poonawala’s alleged confession before the police is not admissible as evidence in court, and Walkar’s father Vikas, in a first information report (FIR) registered at the Manikpur police station in Maharashtra, had said that his daughter and Poonawala first met at a Mumbai call centre they both worked at.

Officers aware of the development said police will now write to Bumble to get details of who all Poonawala befriended on the app.

“He confessed in his questioning that sometime in August-September, he had started going out on dates. He had met a woman who even came to the flat where he murdered Shraddha. We will contact the woman after getting her details from Poonawala’s call data records. We may write to Bumble to see if he befriended other people too... They could be of vital help for us,” a police officer said.

The details of Poonawala’s profile and activities on Bumble and his call detail records could also help police ascertain if Walkar was killed a result of his relationship with another person -- based on his confession, police say the murder occurred because Walkar had been pressuring him to marry her.

An officer who questioned Poonawala said, “Poonawala has told us that in early 2022, the couple had problems in their relationship. They decided to leave Maharashtra and shift to Delhi, where they could both find jobs. Poonawala said they wanted to save their relationship and thus visited Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand before coming to Delhi in the second week of May.”

But investigators are unsure if they should believe Poonawala’s claims of the couple having problems in their relationship -- they point to an Instagram post by Walkar dated February 14, when the couple still lived in Maharashtra, which is a photo of them together with the caption “Happy days”.

Unveiling 'Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On