20 January,2017 09:02 AM IST | | Agencies
A 46-year-old Indian-origin woman’s body was found hidden in a suitcase dumped in an alleyway in the UK, following which Ashwin Daudia (50), believed to be her ex-husband, has been charged with murder
Kiran Daudia. Pic/Twitter/@KiranK30
London: A 46-year-old Indian-origin woman's body was found hidden in a suitcase dumped in an alleyway in the UK following which a man, believed to be her ex-husband, has been charged with murder.
Kiran Daudia's body was discovered in a suitcase with wheels by a member of public in a walkway off Cromer Street, Leicester on Tuesday and a post-mortem is due to be carried out to establish the cause of death.
Kiran, a mother of two young sons, was a call center worker with popular UK retailer Next in the city in the East Midlands region of England. Leicestershire Police said they had charged Ashwin Daudia, 50, with murder and remanded him in custody. Daudia, of Lyme Road, Leicester, will appear at Leicester Magistrates' Court today.'
"A 50-year-old man has been charged with murder following the body of woman being discovered in a suitcase, Leicestershire Police said in a statement. The man arrested is Kiran Daudia's ex-husband, who appeared before Leicester Magistrates' Court today.
He spoke through a Gujarati interpreter and was remanded into custody. He will appear at Leicester Crown Court tomorrow. According to local media reports, the couple had split up recently after a 20-year marriage. Cromer Street and a nearby property on Mayfield Road remained cordoned off yesterday while police examined the scene.
Anyone who may have seen someone "pulling a suitcase" in the area of Lyme Street and the alleyway behind Cromer Street in the late afternoon or early evening of Monday has been urged to contact the force.
In a statement, family of Kiran said: "Kiran was a much loved mum, daughter, sister and auntie, and she will be deeply missed by us all. We ask that our privacy be respected during this very difficult time."
Daudia's former workplace also expressed shock at her death. A spokesperson for Next said: "Next is shocked to learn of the tragic death of our colleague Mrs Kiran Daudia in such horrific circumstances.
"Kiran was a long-standing, much loved and highly respected member of our Customer Services Team, having worked at Next for over 17 years. Our thoughts are with her family, friends and co-workers at this saddest of times. She will be sorely missed.
"Naturally this is a police matter and Next is co-operating fully with the investigation. As it is an on-going situation Next is unable to comment further." Neighbours said they feared the victim may be a local woman who disappeared shortly before the case was discovered. Jasbir Kaur said she spoke to the missing woman's sister at around 9.30 AM yesterday.
"The woman said my sister is missing. She was last seen when she finished work at 2:00 PM yesterday. She left work and did not come home," Kaur said.
Forensic officers carried out a number of searches after the grim find, and door-to-door enquires were carried out in the area.
