Foul smell gives away MP youth’s sinister plan to escape murder; police recover woman’s body stored in fridge after 8 months

Madhya Pradesh police have arrested a youth for allegedly murdering his live-in partner and stuffing her body in refrigerator for over eight months. The foul smell that emanated after the power to the fridge was cut off led to the arrest.

Dewas police recovered the decomposed body of a woman in her 30s, from a refrigerator in a house located in Vrindavan Dham Colony on Friday. According to police, the saree-clad woman, was wearing jewellery and her hands were tied along with a noose around her neck. Police said the murder could have happened almost a year ago.

Puneet Gehlot, Dewas Superintendent of Police said, "The woman is in her 30s. We suspect she was killed in June 2024. After a foul smell started emanating, neighbours called the landlord who opened a portion of the house. The woman's body was found in the refrigerator, the shelves of which had been removed. He then alerted police.”

According to police, the house was owned by one Dhirendra Shrivastava and he had rented the place to a person named Sanjay Patidar of Ujjain in June 2023. Pattidar vacated the house a year later but continued to keep his belongings in a study room and the master bedroom. “He told Shrivastava he would vacate this portion later. Patidar used to visit the house once in a while,” the SP said.

The current tenant had recently asked the landlord to unlock this portion of the house. The landlord showed this portion of the house to the tenant but then locked it again. The houseowner also switched off the power supply on Wednesday, police said.  Foul smell started emanating from that portion of the house after the refrigerator stopped functioning, police said. Police have taken custody of Patidar and they are investigating.