Woman, partner kill stranger in revenge plot against family in Noida

NOIDA: A woman presumed dead alive and a woman reported missing murdered.
The arrest of a 22-year-old BA graduate and her partner (28) in Noida has uncovered a revenge plot resembling a Harlan Coben thriller, involving months of search for a 'disposable' target, a cold-blooded murder, and attempts to commit a few more from anonymity that only 'death' could provide.

At the heart of the plot is Payal Bhati. The woman who was murdered is Hema Chaudhary (28). They were strangers with separate lives that had no apparent reason to converge if not for the spine-chilling scheme that Payal set into motion.
It began this May. A bitter family strife at Payal's household in Dadri's Badhpura blew up with the death of her parents.
Multiple killings plan began with a cold-blooded murder
The couple died by suicide, allegedly after harassment by her cousin, sister-in-law and two others over repaying a Rs 5 lakh loan. Payal went to the police and an abetment case was filed.
But they remained free and the rage within Payal exploded. Ironically, her revenge-at-any-cost plan began with a proclamation of love to Ajay Singh, a 28-year-old man with a wife and two children who she had befriended on social media in 2020. She needed an ally and he agreed when she proposed to marry him if he helped her.
They decided revenge was best served from the shadows and Payal would have to die for the world. But they needed a body, and the scary conspiracy that engulfed a stranger took shape as Payal and Ajay scanned social media and looked around for the right 'victim', who also had to be a soft target.
A face at the mall
In the first week of November, they found a match.
Hema was at work as usual in a branded apparel showroom at Gaur City Mall when Ajay spotted her. She was of Payal's height and build. Unbeknownst to Hema, he took her picture and sent it to Payal. A day later, he returned to the mall.
He appeared friendly and managed to strike up a conversation with Hema.
A police officer involved in the probe said Ajay offered to help Hema when he learnt during the chat that she was separated and was bringing up a seven-year-old son. "When he realised she needed money, he offered her Rs 5,000," the officer said.
On November 12 night, he met her again and invited her home. From the mall, the two headed straight for Payal's house on his Yamaha FZ. Payal had, meanwhile, served an early dinner to her two brothers and a tenant who ate with them. "She had mixed sleeping pills in the food," said the officer (so far, the brothers' involvement has been ruled out). The three had retired to their rooms and fallen asleep by the time Ajay arrived with Hema.
Ajay, the officer added, took Hema straight to the terrace, where Payal waited. They overpowered Hema and slit her throat with a knife. "Payal had attempted suicide after her parents' death and had knife marks on her wrist. They made similar ones on Hema," said the officer. They burnt her face and neck with hot oil, put Payal's clothes on Hema's body and left for Bulandshahr on a bus.
The next morning, Payal's brothers found the body and a suicide note in Payal's handwriting.
"Puri talne ke time garam tel girne se buri tarah jal gayi hu. Mujhe ab samaj me koi pasand nahi karega. Jis wajah se mai hath ki nash kat kar apni jaan de rahi hu (Hot oil fell on me when I was making puris and I got badly burnt. No one is society will like me anymore. I'm slitting my wrist to end my life)" the note read.
The brothers performed the last rites. Police weren't informed.
Two 'missing' complaints
On November 15, Hema's sister filed a missing person's complaint at Bisrakh police station. "We got the call details of Hema's phone and found the last call was made on November 12. The number to which that call was made was found to be Ajay's.
So, we began tracking Ajay. We also found CCTV footage from an area near the mall in which Hema and Ajay were seen on a bike. Thirdly, the last location of Hema's phone was also found to be Badhpura," said a member of the investigation team.
The probe, meanwhile, found that after November 12, Ajay had not made any contact with his family in Bulandshahr. His family had filed a missing person's complaint at Sikandrabad police station in the west UP district.
Newlyweds with a gun
Joining the dots led police to a house in Bulandshahr's Beesa Colony, where a newly married couple had taken up residence. This was Ajay and Payal, now living as husband and wife. As promised, Payal had married him. The rituals happened at an Arya Samaj temple in Greater Noida. "They got married on November 27. But before the marriage, they had decided to kill Sunil (Payal's cousin). For that, they had purchased a countrymade pistol and bullets. They had also done three recces of Sunil (who lived at Jarcha in Greater Noida), but got caught before they could execute their plan," said additional DCP (Noida central) Saad Miya Khan.
That's how they learnt about Payal and the "suicide". On Thursday night, Payal and Ajay were arrested. A forensic team that went to the Badhpura house found some blood stains on the stairs and terrace, police said. Khan said after Payal's parents died by suicide, a case under Section 306 of the IPC was registered on a complaint from Payal's brother Arun against Sunil, Arun's wife Swati, and Swati's brothers Koushendra Singh and Golu Singh.
"During interrogation, Payal said she planned to take revenge from those who were responsible for her parents' death. Sunil had given Rs 5 lakh to her father for Arun's marriage and he was forcing him to return money as soon as possible. The sister-in-law and her brothers were accused of mental torture for other reasons," said a police officer.
From Payal and Ajay's possession, Hema's two mobile phones were found. The clothes Hema was wearing at the time of the murder were allegedly thrown into a pond. Police said they also found a knife, the FZ bike and a marriage certificate of Payal and Ajay. Payal and Ajay have been booked under Section 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC and sections of the Arms Act. A local court sent them to judicial custody on Friday.