Surat man burned wife’s palms to make identification difficult

SURAT: Police have recovered some parts of the body of the woman who was cut into several pieces by her husband on Sunday night and thrown into Udhna Khadi passing through the city.
Shanawaz was officially arrested by the police on Tuesday. It was second marriage for the woman, who was Shanawaz’s second wife. The accused confessed to have killed his second wife Zulekha in anger on the third floor of their Parsi Sheri house.

After strangling her, he cut her body into several pieces. He took her one arm in a sack on a scooter and threw it in Bhathna Khadi. He was caught there on Monday night before he could throw another piece of his wife’s body in Bhathna Khadi from ONGC bridge. The accused confessed to cops that he still had four packets containing his wife’s body parts in his house.

Police found the slain woman’s head, an arm and two legs in the packets. Her fingers were missing, but torso was found in a bag from near Magdalla bridge.

A police officer said the culprit had cut off her fingers to ensure she is not traced through her fingerprints. He had burned her palms and face with petrol to make identification difficult. The accused destroyed the victim’s clothes and broke her cell phone and threw them away. Efforts are on to recover them. The accused had purchased bags and gloves from a shop selling plastic bags and items.

Another police officer said, “We will request the court to remand him in police custody because we still have to recover many things and also find out who all helped him in committing this brutal crime.”