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Commonwealth v. Bhatt

Day 13 · Prince William County, VA

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The CaseFirst-degree murder and concealing a body · prosecution's case · scheduled through Nov 19

Charged: First-degree murder; concealing a dead body; defiling a dead body.

What happened: Mamta Kafle Bhatt has been missing, and her body has never been found. Her husband, Naresh Bhatt, is charged in her death. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The state says: Bhatt killed his wife, dismembered her body and threw the remains away in trash bins in Manassas Park and Fairfax, and his Google searches beforehand show premeditation.

The defense says: there is a "black hole" in the evidence the prosecution cannot fill, and most of the forensic work speaks to hiding a body, not to a premeditated killing.

Where it stands: prosecution's case · scheduled through Nov 19.

Judge Kimberly A. Irving · Defense: Tracey Lenox

Updated Day 10

Day 13 ·Wed Oct 28

Investigator Zanis testified about texts extracted from Bhatt's phone; the judge received them into evidence without defense objection

Video: Court TV · Published 8:37 PM ET

0:00:41
A prosecutor read a Feb. 16 message in which Bhatt wrote "Okay, I have left the state," followed by messages about the couple's daughter and custody.
Other
0:00:41 into Court TV · part 3 (edited clip)
0:05:58
A prosecutor read Feb. 17 messages that included the line "That's probably why we getting divorced," and one about bringing police to the home.
Other
0:05:58 into Court TV · part 3 (edited clip)
0:07:45
A prosecutor read Feb. 18 and 19 messages including Please do not provoke me for suicide and The days are coming that you will regret a lot.
Other
0:07:45 into Court TV · part 3 (edited clip)
0:18:21
Investigator Zanis described a text from Mamta Kafle's phone to Bhatt's phone, translated from Nepali, saying the couple's daughter was crying.
Direct (state)
0:18:21 into Court TV · part 3 (edited clip)
0:19:27
Investigator Zanis testified that a text message to Bhatt's phone was sent July 28, 2024 at 9:42 PM and read on July 29 at 5:55 PM.
Direct (state)
0:19:27 into Court TV · part 3 (edited clip)
Full Recap and All 30 Moments

Earlier Days

Day 12 · Tue, Oct 27A Manassas Park neighbor testified Naresh Bhatt told him he was unhappy in his marriage and was thinking about divorceDay 11 · Mon, Oct 26Investigator testified she believed stains inside a saw were blood; a witness read work-account searches about marrying after a spouse diesDay 10 · Wed, Oct 21Witness describes Bhatt in white gloves throwing trash bags into a compactor; judge says Commonwealth's case can't take three more weeksDay 9 · Tue, Oct 20Nurse who trained Mamta Kafle testifies she saw a bruise below her eye in December 2023; judge overrules hearsay objectionDay 8 · Mon, Oct 19Nadia Navarro identifies Naresh Bhatt in court; jury sees a recorded interview in which the man questioned says he never liesDay 7 · Thu, Oct 15Witness says stain under bedroom rug was suspected blood; investigator says Bhatt's claimed Aug. 1 call to Mamta could not be verifiedDay 6 · Wed, Oct 14Journalist Sachchi Mainali testifies Bhatt told her he last saw Mamta on a Wednesday; witness describes Blue Star reactions at homeDay 5 · Tue, Oct 13Detective Ventura testifies the master bedroom lit up blue under Bluestar and says she never saw a video of Mamta at USCISDay 4 · Thu, Oct 8Mamta Kafle's mother tells jury she came to look for her missing daughter; sergeant says Bhatt gave July 31 as last contactDay 3 · Wed, Oct 7Prosecutor tells jury Naresh Bhatt killed his wife, Mamta Kafle, and concealed her body; defense says evidence has a "black hole"All 13 Days
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Witnesses

Investigator ZanisCommonwealth · Testified today
A witnessCommonwealth · a witness · Testified today
All 25 Witnesses