Ambernath couple held for killing man’s stepbrother

A first information report was filed on October 4 with Badlapur’s Kulgaon police. Pics/Navneet Barathe

A couple was arrested for allegedly killing the man's stepbrother. The alleged incident took place on October 4 around 3 am when the victim visited the couple's residence in Ambernath.

The police have identified the accused as Mohammad Siraj and his wife Razia. The deceased, a native of Jharkhand, has been identified as Mohammad Alam Muslim Ansari, 24, the stepbrother of the accused. The arrest was made on October 7.

The body was found in a plastic sack near Dhrol Chargaon Road

According to the police, Ansari and Razia got into a physical altercation and Razia allegedly struck him on the head with a wooden stick, which led to his death, and later, the couple disposed of the body in a plastic sack, abandoning it in a deserted area in Badlapur.

According to the police, the murder was triggered by Ansari's desire to marry Razia.

An investigation was launched after a complaint was filed with Badlapur's Kulgaon police. The complainant in this is a police officer, who found the body wrapped in a plastic sack near Dhrol Chargaon Road.

"The body was dressed in a black shirt and blue jeans. He had a black thread tied around his right hand, and ‘Madalam' was inked on his right wrist," said an investigating officer.

The body had been dumped in a deserted location, making it difficult for the police to identify suspects due to the lack of witnesses. "With no eyewitnesses, we relied heavily on CCTV footage. We examined around 70 to 80 cameras in search of a lead," added the officer.

The officer said that while scrutinising the CCTV footage, the police found a motorist transporting a plastic sack, leading investigators to trace the two-wheeler. The vehicle was traced to Ambernath which led the police to Siraj's house in Vangani.

The couple has been booked under murder charges.