Man stabs woman to death, burns her body to make it look like suicide

The mutilated body of a 35-year-old woman was recovered from her Mankhurd home on Tuesday afternoon.

The victim was identified as Sufiya Shaikh. Officials said Shaikh had remarried five years ago, and was living with one of her two sons from her previous marriage, in Rajgadya Building in Lallubhai Compound.

While her second son stays with her relatives in Ratnagiri, her current husband works in Saudi Arabia. They said the unidentified killer took advantage of the fact that Shaikh was alone at home and murdered her. An official from the Mankhurd police station said, "The accused killed her with a knife, as we found two stab marks on her head and neck. But to make it look like a suicide, the killer poured kerosene on her body and set it on fire." The killer left the house while the body was burning and locked the door from outside.

But the body failed to char, providing police with vital evidence that it was a murder and not a suicide case. It was Shaikh's neighbour who discovered her body and informed the police, following which the police sent her body for post-mortem. A case has been registered against the unidentified killer under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code. In addition, police have detained Shaikh's ex-husband for questioning.