Witness saw man leave bag at rly platform

Police said the suitcase containing the body of a woman at Sandhurst Road was found late Monday night by a local, Shashi Gohil, who lives close to the station.

Police said the suitcase containing the body of a woman at Sandhurst Road was found late Monday night by a local, Shashi Gohil, who lives close to the station.

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Around 1.30 am, Gohil saw a man, around 30 years old, standing with a suitcase on platform number 1. The man then left the suitcase at the platform, crossed the tracks and disappeared.

Suspecting something amiss, Gohil informed the Government Railway Police (GRP), who on finding the body inside the suitcase, first took it to St George Hospital and later shifted it to Sir JJ Hospital.

“The suitcase has ‘VISAM’ inscribed on it. As the train that the person got off from came from Badlapur, a team has been formed to search for the place from where the suitcase was bought, which could lead us to the accused,” said AM Jadhav, senior inspector of Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, GRP.

The GRP is also checking CCTV footage at several railway stations for leads in the case.

The police suspect the murder may have happened around midnight, as rigor mortis had not yet set in when the body was found.

“The woman was assaulted before being killed as she had injuries on her body but she was not stabbed. The exact cause of death can be ascertained only after the post mortem,” said additional director general of police (railway), Raj Khilnani.

Police said the technique of disposing the bodies in both the Juhu Koliwada and Sandhurst cases were similar. Both women had been strangled, both were in the same age bracket, were wrapped in a blanket and stuffed in a suitcase.

Both were found without underclothes.

“Prima facie it appears that the same person has committed both murders. But, only after a detailed investigation can we make a comment,” said KMM Prasanna, deputy commissioner of police (zone 9).