DNA from Shraddha Walkar’s bones, hair matches with her family: Police

This is the second time police have confirmed the DNA recovered from the bones found in a south Delhi jungle belong to Walkar

The DNA extracted from bones and hair believed to be that of Shraddha Walkar, which were sent to Hyderabad’s Centre for Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) as it could not be retrieved at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s forensic laboratory earlier, has matched with that of her family members.

Poonawala was arrested on November 12. (PTI)

The Delhi Police, which are probing Walkar’s murder allegedly by her boyfriend Aaftab Poonawala, on Wednesday said they received a report in this regard on Wednesday.

Special police commissioner Sagar Preet Hooda said the exhibits were sent for DNA Mitrocondrial profiling. “The DNA from bones and hair matched with Walkar’s father and her brother. This establishes the bone and hair to be that of Shraddha Walkar. The bones will now be sent for post-mortem examination.”

This is the second time police have confirmed the DNA recovered from the bones found in a south Delhi jungle belong to Walkar,27. Poonawala, 28, allegedly murdered and chopped her body in May last year.

Police in December confirmed that DNA retrieved from bones found in the jungle matched with that of Walkar’s father.

“The new DNA is from the exhibits from which we were unable to retrieve the DNA. It was sent to Hyderabad because the laboratory has better facilities for DNA Mitrocondrial profiling,” an investigating officer said.

Poonawala, who is lodged in Delhi’s Tihar jail, and Walkar were in a relationship and moved to Delhi from Mumbai last year. Walkar was estranged from her family, who opposed her relationship with Poonawala.

The alleged murder came to light when a friend informed Walkar’s father that he had not heard from her for at least two months. Her father then informed Mumbai Police in October.

The grisly crime was unearthed on November 12 after Poonawala ostensibly told the police that he murdered Walkar in their Chhattarpur flat six months ago, chopped her body into at least 35 pieces for over two days, stored them in a refrigerator for about three months, and dumped the body parts piece by piece.

Police later said the couple fought over finances on May 18 – three days after they moved into the flat in Chhattarpur. Poonawala, who worked at a call centre in Gurugram, was arrested on November 12.