Engineer who fled to Hyd after killing wife, held upon return

The murder took place last Thursday at the couple’s house at PK Road in Mulund

The police arrested a Mulund-based engineer who murdered his 30-year-old estranged wife when she refused to get back together with him. The accused, Jayesh Mhadlekar, fled to Hyderabad but returned to the city on Saturday.

Jayesh and his wife had lodged around 25 non-cognisable complaints against each other owing to their dispute. (HT Photo)

Mhadlekar and Shreya were married for 12 years. They have a 10-year-old son. However, their relationship soured after he started suspecting her of having an extra-marital affair. He grew abusive and would harass her after getting drunk, said the police.

The murder took place last Thursday at the couple’s house at PK Road in Mulund, which Shreya’s parents had gifted them.

Owing to the constant harassment, Shreya moved in with her parents.On Wednesday, Mhadlekar allegedly arrived at Shreya’s parents’ house and tried to convince her to get back together with him. She refused. On Thursday, he returned and insisted once more.

Shreya and he left for the private hospital where she was employed.

However, she never made it to work. Suspecting foul play, her mother Madhuri, 52, looked for her at the PK Road house – a ground-plus-one structure.

The police learnt that Mhadlekar took her there and hit her on the head with an iron rod. In her statement to the police, Madhuri said she found her daughter in a pool of blood upstairs.

“After murdering her, Mhadlekar got on a train and went to Hyderabad. He reached his friend’s house and borrowed money from him,” said an officer from Mulund police station.

The police, who were on the lookout for him, received a tip-off that he was near Kalyan railway station on Saturday. He was arrested outside Shivam Hotel near the station around 4pm. He will be produced before the metropolitan court on Sunday.

The couple had lodged close to 25 non-cognisable complaints against each other owing to their dispute. In her statement, Shreya’s mother described Mhadlekar’s abusive behavior. “There was an incident in which Mdhadlekar pulled her hair out. Six months ago, he hit her on the head with a cooker,” she told police. She added that she had tried to counsel him in the past, to no avail.

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Engineer kills wife for refusing to stay with him in Mulund home, is on the run