Naresh Bhatt tells police 'I don't know' why wife Mamta vanished — murder trial

Interrogation video shown in court reveals Naresh Bhatt admitted the couple had a troubled relationship but denied they were fighting when his wife disappeared.

Bhatt admits troubled marriage in police interrogation video played at murder trial

Interrogation footage shown to a Manassas Park courtroom on Tuesday captured Naresh Bhatt telling investigators he had no explanation for why his wife, Mamta Khafle Bhatt, vanished in 2024, nbcwashington.com reports.

Bhatt is on trial for the murder of Mamta, whose body has never been recovered. Prosecutors allege he dismembered her.

The video, played at the opening of Tuesday's proceedings, showed Bhatt acknowledging that Mamta would frequently leave the home during arguments. He insisted, however, that the couple were not fighting at the time of her disappearance.

"OK. Why do you think she left?" the interrogating officer asked.

"I don't know. That's the [inaudible]. That's the problem," Bhatt replied.

When the investigator followed up — "Was she happy in her relationship with you?" — and then pressed further, asking "Then why's she leaving all the time?", Bhatt did not offer a clear answer.

Asked how many times he had called Mamta after she went missing, Bhatt said only "a few."

The police captain who conducted the interrogation also took the stand on Tuesday to offer testimony on the exchange.

Bhatt has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, defiling a dead body, and concealment of a dead body. Trial proceedings are set to resume Wednesday at 9 a.m.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)