A woman went missing in July 2024 from her home in Virginia, and the first people to report her missing were her coworkers when she did not show up to work days later. When her husband was confronted, he reportedly told police, friends, and a journalist conflicting statements about what happened in those days.

Wife Goes Missing

Naresh Bhatt, 49, pleaded not guilty to the murder of his wife, Mamta Kafle, 28, and the defiling of a body. Kafle was last seen on July 30, 2024, and prosecutors believe that Bhatt took her life in their home. Officers arrived at the family home on August 2 after the victim’s nurse coworkers called for a wellness check.

Jurors watched body-worn camera video from the interaction between Bhatt and Detective Claudia Ventura, one of the officers who showed up at the home and then testified at trial. Ventura said that Bhatt responded differently each time she asked what his wife was last wearing.

At first, Bhatt said his wife was wearing her work scrubs, but then he changed it to a T-shirt and pants. He also commented that “She’s not a fancy girl,” when trying to recall how her hair was worn.

Ventura went through Kafle’s things, including the shared closet and her bags. She found cleaning products stored away, which is natural, but also came across birth control and abortion pills, which are not as commonly found in a family’s home.

Worried Friends Seek Answers

Sunita Bhandari, one of Kafle’s best friends, grew increasingly worried when she didn’t hear from her for days. She first contacted Kafle’s mother on August 2, saying she couldn’t reach her. All her texts went unanswered, and all calls went straight to voicemail. It got to the point where she contacted Bhatt, who did not seem as worried.

Bhatt responded to Bhandari on August 3, saying that Kafle was working until Saturday and everything was fine, but hours later, he changed his tune. He texted his wife’s friend, “She is not at work, she might be at her apartment,” but an apartment had never been mentioned to her before.

“Did you guys have a fight again?” Bhandari asked.

“No, we decided to separate with respect. No any discussion at all even we don’t argue. She wanted to move either NY or TX,” Bhatt responded. Bhandari continued to question her friend’s whereabouts, especially since she was not aware of any plans for her to travel out of state.

Journalist Interview

Bhatt also spoke with Nepali journalist Sachchi Mainali about his wife’s disappearance and their relationship. Mainali testified on Wednesday that she was not able to get straight answers out of the defendant regarding the days following when his wife was supposedly missing.

Interviews with the two, conducted in Nepali on August 18, 2024, via Facebook Live and subtitled in English, showed Bhatt admitting he and his wife never fought and had not argued since April 2024, months before Kafle’s disappearance.

“No, we stopped having even positive arguments, not even in a teasing manner…sometimes we engage in petty fights in a bantering manner, like how I used to spill water over her,” Bhatt said. “We had a formal [relationship].”

Mainali also pushed Bhatt in the interview to tell her more about filing a missing person’s report and why he did not search for his wife. “You have been asking those things. I told you things related to law enforcement; things related to the investigation are strictly confidential,” Bhatt told Mainali.

“The public concern centers on why you didn’t file the report immediately, on the same date?” she asked. “Police have to do their own protocols.”

Bhatt responded defensively, saying he reported her missing on the 2nd, but Mainali countered, “The report on the 2nd came from her workplace, not from you. It was a wellness check initiated by her workplace,” she said.

“Let me explain further,” Bhatt said. “By that time, I got serious. Even before that, she had stayed at a friend’s place a couple of times. She didn’t come home for one night.“

Unveiling The Truth

Bhatt’s attorney asked jurors during opening statements on October 7, 2026, not to rush to judgment until all the evidence has been presented. “There is a sort of black hole at the time of Mamta Kafle’s disappearance,” she said. “And it’s a hole where evidence should be.”

Kafle’s body has never been found, and she is presumed dead.