An 18-year-old woman named Shabnam was found murdered inside a clothing showroom trial room in Delhi’s Moti Nagar on Saturday. Police arrested a man named Suraj for the crime. Officials suspect one-sided love led to the killing. The accused allegedly used a sharp weapon before he fled the scene.
An 18-year-old woman, whose body was found with her throat slit inside the trial room of a clothing showroom in Delhi's Moti Nagar on Saturday, was murdered by a man known to her. The accused, identified as Suraj, has been arrested by the police.
Police suspect that strained personal relations and one-sided love may have led to the killing. The woman, identified as Shabnam, worked at a showroom near the Moti Nagar Metro Station and lived with her family in west Delhi.
Her family has alleged that Suraj, who they claim knew her and was friends with the teen earlier, had assaulted her physically in the past.
According to the preliminary investigation, the accused reached the showroom on Saturday evening, around the time the teen's shift was ending. Suraj was allegedly carrying a sharp-edged weapon.
Initial police findings suggest that he took Shabnam to the changing room on the pretext of speaking to her. The police suspect that the man then slit her throat and fled the scene.
The incident came to light around 9 pm when other showroom employees were preparing to shut the establishment. On checking the trial room, they found Shabnam lying in a pool of blood and alerted the police.
Police personnel rushed to the spot and found injury marks on the woman's neck, caused by a sharp-edged weapon. Her body was taken into custody and sent for a post-mortem examination to ascertain the precise cause of death.
According to the police, Shabnam and the accused had known each other and were reportedly on friendly terms earlier. However, their relationship had allegedly soured over the past few months.
The owner of a shop near the clothing showroom was among the first to enter the premises after the murder. A mobile-recorded video from the scene shows a stream of blood flowing from the gap beneath the trial room door.
A woman, who remains off-camera, is heard asking others to call the police. She also points out that the door was latched from the outside.
Delhi Police has formed multiple teams to track down the accused. He, along with his family, were missing from their home following the murder, according to police sources.
The police, however, were able to bring in some of Suraj's relatives for questioning, they said.
CCTV footage and data from cameras installed inside the showroom and in the surrounding areas have been collected to establish the sequence of events and trace his movements and escape route.
In a latest development, Delhi Police has apprehended Suraj, who killed Shabnam. The official process of placing him under arrest is underway. Further investigation is continuing.