Naresh Bhatt, husband of missing Virginia woman, charged with murder

Manassas, USA, December 3 — A grand jury in Virginia has handed up an indictment charging Naresh Bhatt, the Manassas Park man whose wife has been missing since July, with murder.

Bhatt was also charged with defiling a body and already faces a felony charge of concealment of a body, according to Prince William County online court records. He is expected to appear in court Tuesday morning where he will be formally charged.

Authorities previously said Mamta Kafle Bhatt, 28, a mother to a young daughter, was presumed dead. No one has been able to locate the beloved Nepalese community member since July 27, when she was last seen at UVA Health Prince William Medical Center in Manassas, where she worked as a registered nurse in the medical surgical unit.

Manassas Park Chief of Police Mario Lugo told reporters at a news conference Monday evening that DNA tests proved blood that was in Kafle Bhatt’s bedroom belonged to her and evidence showed she was killed July 29.

 “From the beginning, we believed that she was murdered … based on the crime scene,” the chief said. “This (DNA test result) helps the case and it kind of certifies what we thought occurred.”

The chief said they continue to look for a body but the lack of one is not detrimental to the investigation.

“I feel we have a strong case,” he said, adding the charge of defiling a body was connected to evidence that showed Kafle Bhatt’s body was dismembered.

While executing a search warrant, investigators found what appeared to be blood pooling and blood splatter in the home’s main bedroom, light pink stains were found on bedroom carpeting, and pools of blood were found in the bathroom “as if something was dragged across the floor,” among other details, CNN affiliate WJLA reported from an August arraignment.

CNN has reached out to the Prince William County public defender’s office for comment. The office has previously said it doesn’t comment outside the courtroom on any case.

Amy Ashworth, the commonwealth’s attorney for Prince William County and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, has said the office won’t comment to the media until the case is over.

Some members of Kafle Bhatt’s family were at the news conference but chose not to speak. Holly Wirth, a former coworker, told reporters the new charges gave them a sense of relief but no one was celebrating.

“We’re not here happy,” she said. “There’s no amount of jail time that’s going to bring back what they really want, which is their daughter.”

Police first visited the couple’s home in Manassas on August 2 after Kafle Bhatt’s coworkers called for a wellness check the day before. Kafle Bhatt worked two days a week at the hospital and was expected to work on August 1 and 2. Officials said they grew concerned after she did not show up to work or call.

When police talked to Naresh Bhatt, he “provided additional information” and told investigators he did not want to report her as missing at the time, police said.

Three days after the wellness check, Bhatt, a former Fairfax County police recruit and former US Army Reserve automated logistics specialist, reported her missing and told investigators he last saw his wife at the dinner table July 31.

Naresh Bhatt was taken away in handcuffs August 22 after authorities conducted a search at the couple’s home. In September, he was denied bail.

WJLA reported after September’s bail hearing that prosecutors told the court Bhatt was recorded on camera driving his car – on some occasions during the night – disposing of trash bags in dumpsters and trash compactors in the days after his wife was reported missing.