Ghaziabad: 35-year-old held for killing woman friend at his house

Several police teams were tracking the suspect who had fled to Haridwar and when he returned to visit his family in Loni, he was tracked via electronic surveillance and nabbed

Ghaziabad: Days after a woman’s decomposed body was recovered from a house in Loni’s Ilaychipur locality on April 24, the Ghaziabad police arrested her 38-year-old male friend on Saturday saying that he allegedly strangled her during an altercation that ensued as he was pushing her to stay with him and also bring along her teenage daughter.

The suspect strangled her with a piece of cloth, tied her hands and legs with a rope and packed the body in a blanket, said police. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

Police identified the suspect as Imran Khan, who stayed at a rented house in Ilaychipur. He is married and has two children. His family resides in Loni but he was ousted due to his bad habits.

Officers said that the suspect and the deceased (name withheld), a resident of a locality under the jurisdiction of Harsh Vihar police station, Delhi, were friends for the last three years. The deceased had five children from two marriages.

She was staying in Delhi with children and sometimes visited the suspect’s rented house where they had a quarrel on April 22, police said.

“Since the suspect had visited her house several times in past, the woman sensed that he had bad intentions towards her minor daughter. So, she opposed his proposal, leading to a heated argument. The suspect strangled her with a piece of cloth, tied her hands and legs with a rope and packed the body in a blanket. That day, he stayed in the same room with the body and fled after locking the house early morning the next day,” said Siddharth Gautam, ACP of Loni Circle.

Locals alerted police on April 24 after a foul smell emanated from the suspect’s house. Police recovered her decomposed body.

Officers said that the landlord of the house provided them a copy of his Aadhar card but it identified him as Faizul instead of Imran Khan, ACP said.

Officers said the autopsy revealed the cause of death as “asphyxia due to ante-mortem strangulation” (before death).

Her son, who was searching for his mother, learned about her from media persons about a body found in Ilaychipur. Later, he identified her. An FIR was registered at Tronica City police station under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita section 103(1) (murder). The boy named the suspect Imran alias Faizul in the FIR.

“Several police teams were tracking the suspect who had fled to Haridwar. When he returned to visit his family in Loni, he was tracked via electronic surveillance. An Aadhar-card which he submitted to his landlord will also be verified. Apart from murder case, the suspect may face further legal action if the Aadhar card was found to be fake,” the ACP added.