Shraddha murder: Accused Aftab helped family shift to Mumbai 15 days ago  

Aftab Amin Poonawala, accused of brutally killing his live-in partner in Delhi and dismembering her body, had visited the housing society in Vasai in Palghar district of Maharashtra a fortnight ago to help his family members shift to Mumbai, a society member said on Tuesday (November 15).

The 28-year-old, arrested for strangling his live-in partner Shraddha Walkar, has confessed that he sawed her body into 35 pieces which he kept in a 300-litre fridge for almost three weeks at his residence in South Delhi’s Mehrauli before dumping them across the city over several days.

“Aftab Poonawala had visited Unique Park Housing Society in Vasai around 15 days back to help his family members who shifted from the society to Mumbai,” a housing society member told PTI.

Also read: Shraddha’s father demands death penalty for Aftab, suspects ‘love jihad’

The society member said Aftab spoke normally and no one could have suspected that he had committed such a heinous crime.

He said the Poonawalas own a flat in the society and lived there for 20 years before shifting. Nobody ever complained against them.

“When we asked them the reason behind shifting, Aftab’s father told us that his son got a job in Mumbai and his company will pay rent. They also spoke about inconvenience (about shuttling between Mumbai and Vasai, which is in Palghar district and part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region),” he said.

The housing society’s secretary Abdullah Khan, who lives on the third floor of the wing where the Poonawalas have a flat, said Aaftab and his family members behaved nicely to other residents.

Also read: Shraddha murder: Aftab read about human anatomy, googled how to clean blood

“Around 15 days back they vacated the flat and rented it out. They shifted somewhere near Mumbai. Aftab told me that he was staying in Delhi. I didn’t notice any change in his behaviour. We are shocked to know about the crime, he added.

Brought another woman home when Shraddha’s remains were in fridge: police

Police on Tuesday said that Aftab had brought another woman to his house in Delhi when Shraddha’s body parts were in the fridge. He had reportedly met the woman on Bumble, the dating site where he had met Shraddha for the first time, 15-20 days after killing Shraddha.

Police said while the woman has visited his apartment several times since he started dating her, neighbours have said there were other women too.

Also read: Shraddha murder case: Accused was inspired by Dexter, an American crime drama

“He never mingled with anybody, always stayed away. There used to be parties at their house, but the gates were always shut. Multiple women used to come to his house, even two-three weeks ago. Five or six women came here within a span of 3-4 days,” a neighbour told NDTV.

(With inputs from agencies)