An Indian-origin techie working in the United States has been charged with the murder of his wife, nearly nine months after her body was found in their Washington apartment.
According to the probe, 30-year-old Avinash Narne from Telangana had killed his wife, Raajitha Sabbineni, and sent her body's picture to her girlfriend in India.
Murder and probe thereafter
On a late October night, the accused had allegedly strangled her and then called the Bellevue Police claiming that his wife had locked herself inside the bathroom and wasn't responding.
The officers arrived at the scene, forcefully entered the bathroom and found her lying on the floor. She was pronounced dead on the site. The incident took place in less than six months of their marriage.
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The post-mortem of the body revealed asphyxia, caused by strangulation, as the reason behind the death, following which the death was officially ruled a homicide.
During the probe, suspicion gradually grew towards Narne. Initially, he made several claims of someone else's entry into the house to avoid suspicion but the digital evidence contradicted his claims that someone else entered the house while he was away.
While he did leave the house briefly, there was no record of any intruder. Further investigations revealed his secret relationship with a woman in India, making it a possible motive behind the alleged murder.
According to prosecutors, Narne was in regular contact with the woman even after his marriage. The woman had even attended their wedding ceremony.
On the day of Sabbineni's death, Narne called the woman at least four times. One of the calls was made during the time he claimed to be attempting to gain access to the bathroom, local media reports said.
The police have alleged that Narne sent the photograph of Sabbineni's body to the woman, a move Narne acknowledged during questioning.
Arrest after eight months
Narne remained out of police's reach and free for nearly eight months following the murder. He was later investigated in a follow-up interview, after which Bellevue Police arrested him on suspicion of first-degree murder.
On July 1, he was charged with first-degree murder by a local court. The prosecution termed the murder intentional and premeditated.