Chilling web searches revealed at Virginia murder trial of Naresh Bhatt
A Virginia jury heard disturbing internet searches made by Naresh Bhatt, accused of killing and dismembering his wife Mamta Bhatt, last seen on 29 July 2024.
Virginia murder trial: jury hears Naresh Bhatt's searches for "human brain diagram"
One day after the last known sighting of Mamta Kafle Bhatt, her husband searched for "Human brain diagram" on a cellphone or tablet, a court heard Wednesday. According to courthousenews.com, the search results returned a drawing of the human brain divided into sections.
Katherine Zaimis, a Prince William County Police Department officer, recalled the query during her testimony at the trial of Naresh Bhatt, 39, now in its fourth week at Prince William County Circuit Court in Manassas, Virginia. Bhatt faces charges of murder, defiling a body and concealing a body in connection with the disappearance and presumed killing of his wife Mamta Bhatt, 28, who was last seen during a video call on 29 July 2024.
Bhatt has pleaded not guilty. His defence team has maintained throughout the trial that the prosecution's evidence is insufficient. Mamta Bhatt's body has never been recovered, and prosecutors acknowledge that their case rests on circumstantial evidence. Witnesses have been led with questions intended to establish premeditation and to portray Bhatt as a man capable of planning and carrying out the killing and dismemberment of his wife.
Searches and text messages point to troubled marriage
Searches made on Bhatt's account four months before the killing included "Can I donate my baby to my friend?", "What happens if spouse disappears?" and "Need divorce spouse died in Virginia," Zaimis testified.
Prosecutors also presented an exchange of text messages between the couple to illustrate the state of their marriage. The two argued over money and childcare responsibilities relating to their infant daughter. One message attributed to Naresh Bhatt read: "Please do not provoke me for suicide." He also acknowledged in the messages that his wife had called police to their home. "You forced me to do all that," Mamta Bhatt replied, according to Zaimis.
Mamta Bhatt, a native of Nepal, had applied for United States citizenship and intended to settle permanently in the country, according to representatives of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services who also testified.
Security footage shows dumpster runs
Former FBI agent Cassandra Bulzomi testified Wednesday after having remastered security camera footage showing Naresh Bhatt discarding trash bags in dumpsters in the area. One dumpster was located at the apartment complex of the babysitter for the couple's daughter; another was in Falls Church, approximately 20 miles away. In the footage, Bhatt is clearly visible stepping out of his car, lifting plastic bags into the dumpsters and driving off.
Prosecutors argue that Bhatt killed his wife, dismembered her body and disposed of the remains in those dumpsters.
Blood stains and a saw
Earlier in the trial, an investigator described bedroom furniture in the Bhatt home appearing to have been rearranged. Investigators sprayed the couple's bathroom and bedroom with a chemical and discovered suspected blood stains. They also presented the jury with a saw that they contend Bhatt used in the dismemberment. Forensic investigators testified that blood stains found inside the saw were consistent with the DNA profile of Mamta Bhatt.
The trial continues Thursday before Prince William County Circuit Court Judge Kimberly Irving.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)