Cops yet to get breakthrough in woman murder case

Mumbai Police is yet to achieve a breakthrough in connection with the murder of a 32-year-old homemaker in suburban Malad, although the investigators identified the assailant soon after the murder and secured details about him.
Malad police station has formed three special teams to trace the accused while equal number of squads have been constituted to crack the case by crime branch, police said.
Additional Police Commissioner Kishore Jadhav said, "We identified the accused and are trying to trace him."
Shagufta Khan, the wife of a bookie, who had been arrested in a betting case some years ago, was found murdered yesterday afternoon at her residence in Rustomjee apartments at Marve Road in suburban Malad, police said.

The CCTV footage of the building has led the police to a man, who worked with a local mobile store, and met the 32-year-old woman at her home regularly.
The accused had slit the throat of the victim with a knife before running away with cash and gold valuables. As the culprit was about to sneak out of the house, the victim's two minor daughters entered home. The accused also tried to attack them with the knife, but children managed to save themselves.
"Since yesterday, family members of the accused and the owner of the premises rented out to run the mobile shop by the culprit were questioned, but in vain," said a crime branch officer.

The police teams have fanned out different parts of the state as well as outside Maharashtra to hunt the accused, whose photograph has also been circulated among the informers, police said.