Aaftab Amin Poonawala and Shraddha Walkar posed as a married couple to get rented accommodation and changed three homes in Mumbai in the two years they resided there, the Manikpur Police said.
Shraddha was allegedly murdered by her live-in partner Poonawala in Delhi's Chhattarpur in May this year. The accused and the victim were residing in Mumbai before they decided to move to Delhi earlier in May.
According to the Manikpur Police, Aaftab and Shraddha had first rented a flat in Keni Apartments in Naigaon East in the Vasai-Virar area. They resided there for a year and shifted out in October 2020. Later in the same month, they moved into Regal Apartments in Evershine City in Vasai.
'Neighbours Complained That This Couple Quarrelled a Lot': Flat Owner
The owner of the flat, Jayshree Patkar, who runs a small business, said that she was in "desperate need of money" and hence had decided to rent her flat to Poonawala.
"I used to get a lot of complaints from the neighbours about this couple as they used to quarrel a lot. Whenever I came to collect rent, the neighbours used to tell me how this couple was a nuisance to the whole building as they would fight non-stop. They even told me to ask them to vacate. But I had an agreement for 11 months with them. But then they shifted out in eight months only."Jayshree Patkar
The Quint has accessed the tenant information report in which it is seen that Aaftab had rented out this flat for his family and not only for him and Shraddha alone.
The homeowner said that this society also does not rent out flats for unmarried couples, adding that Shraddha and Aaftab posed as husband and wife, claiming that the apartment was for their family.
They even added two names in the agreement who were supposed to be witnesses.
According to the police, both witnesses did not know Aaftab or Shraddha, adding that the housing agent may have forged the signatures. In the tenant information column, Aaftab’s parents have been included, The Quint has learnt.
'The Boy Told Me She Was His Wife': Neighbour
"I didn't know that they were not married. The boy told me that the victim was his wife and his parents would also stay with them. I was shocked to see this news on television. I immediately recognised the girl," Patkar told The Quint.
Another resident of Regal Apartments confirmed the story and said that this couple was known for two things in the building – their fights, and playing loud music.
On condition of anonymity, the resident said, "They used to come and go according to their work shifts and never interacted much with anyone in the building. This is a quiet and peaceful area. When they fought, even the people on other floors could hear them shouting and abusing. At times they used to play such loud music and at odd hours. It was really disturbing. Most of the time, we had to go and tell them to lower the volume."
In July 2021, they shifted to White Villa in Vasai West, where they stayed till March 2022, after which they left for a holiday in Himachal Pradesh and later moved base to Delhi.
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