Man arrested in Diva murder case

A 26-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly killing a woman, whose body was recovered from a water drum in a highly decomposed state earlier this week, police said today.
The accused, identified as Manoj Singh, a native of Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, was arrested from Nala Soopara yesterday, nearly three months after he fled to his hometown post the incident, senior inspector N T Kadam, Anti Extortion Cell of Crime Branch, Thane City, said.
The body of Neha Pawar (26) was found lying in a drum in an inverted position at a house in Mumbra Devi colony of Diva near here on October 3, months after she went missing.

A case was lodged in this connection under section 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.
The official said that following the recovery of the body, police had formed teams and sent them to the hometown of the accused in Uttar Pradesh but no clue could be gathered from there as he had left the place.
The accused returned and started living in Nalla Sopara from where he was nabbed, Kadam said, adding that they also seized four Aadhar Cards with different names from him.

Giving more details, the officer said the victim had been "demanding" Rs 5 lakh from the accused and also threatened to lodge a police complaint against him if he fails to meet the demand.

On July 11, when the woman visited Singh at his house, a quarrel broke between the two on the Rs 5 lakh demand and vexed by it the accused then attacked and killed her with a knife, the official said.
Later, he disposed the body inside a drum filled with water, mixed phenyl so that foul smell could be contained and locked the house.