Three held for Shil Daighar murders

19-year-old main accused says victim had forced her into prostitution

Nabbed: The three accused were arrested in Gulbarga, Karnataka, and brought to Thane.

The Shil Daighar police on Monday claimed to have solved the murder of a 32-year-old woman and her 11-year-old daughter with the arrest of three people from Karnataka. The main accused, a 19-year-old woman, has told the police that the victim had pushed her into flesh trade.

The victims, Naziya Siddiqui and her daughter, Taniya, were found murdered at their residence in Pimprigaon on Panvel Road on November 5. Arshiya Sheikh (19) was the prime suspect in the murders.

According to the police, closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in the neighourhood had captured Ms. Sheikh and two others entering the area during the early hours of November 5 and leaving after around an hour.

Using the help of local informants and footage from CCTV cameras at bus stops, autorickshaw stands and railway stations, the police tracked the trio to Surat.

“At the Surat bus depot, we showed pictures of Sheikh and her friend, Ali Akbar Kachwala (28), to bus and autorickshaw drivers. We found some witnesses who remembered seeing them board a bus to Indore. Using the same method, we tracked them from Indore to Bhopal, and from there to Gulbarga in Karnataka,” said an officer who was part of a special team formed to trace the accused.

They were finally picked up from near Gulbarga railway station and brought to Thane. On the way, the investigating team questioned them about the murder.

“Sheikh, in her interrogation, said that after Siddiqui’s brother severed ties with her (Sheikh) suspecting her of adultery, Siddiqui employed her as domestic help. Shortly thereafter, Siddiqui forced her into prostitution, and would pocket all the money she earned. Fed up of the exploitation, she sought the help of Kachwala, whom she had befriended while staying with Siddiqui,” said the officer.

On the night of the murder, Sheikh, Kachwala, and his relative Amina (47) reached the Siddiqui residence. Siddiqui opened the door and the trio forced her inside, and slit her throat with a kitchen knife. The sound of the scuffle woke up Taniya, and the accused allegedly smothered her to death. They took whatever valuables they could lay their hands on and fled the scene.

The police are currently verifying the claims made by Arshiya and the other accused, said officers.