MANASSAS, Va. — Naresh Bhatt pleaded not guilty Monday as jury selection began in his trial on charges stemming from his wife’s disappearance, according to 7News.
About 300 prospective jurors were summoned to Prince William County Circuit Court. The judge told them the trial was expected to take seven weeks. Selecting a jury could take at least two days and extend further into the week, 7News reported.
Bhatt, 39, is charged with murder, concealing a body and defiling a body. He is presumed innocent unless convicted.
His wife, Mamta Kafle Bhatt, has never been found, according to FOX 5 DC.
Before jury selection, his attorneys asked to delay the trial. Bhatt then addressed the judge directly, raising 11 points, including that he had not decided whether to testify. The judge rejected his request for another judge to hear the case, 7News reported.
News organizations have permission to record courtroom proceedings for later reporting, but they cannot livestream the trial. NBC4 Washington reported that the judge could restrict camera access if it interfered with jury selection.
The investigation began after Mamta Kafle Bhatt missed her nursing shift at UVA Health Prince William Medical Center on Aug. 1, 2024. At her co-workers’ request, police checked on her at the couple’s Heather Court home the following day, FOX 5 reported.
Naresh Bhatt told officers he did not believe his wife was missing, explaining that she had previously left for a day or two. Relatives and friends disputed that account, saying she would not abandon her infant daughter, according to FOX 5.
Police declared her involuntarily missing on Aug. 5. Officers arrested Bhatt on Aug. 22 after investigators reported finding large bloodstains in the home’s main bedroom and bathroom. He has remained in custody since then, FOX 5 reported.
Prosecutors allege that Bhatt placed his wife’s remains in garbage bags and disposed of them around the area. That account has not been independently established in the source material reviewed for this article.
According to Courthouse News Service, a state forensic report identified human hairs and fibers on a power saw recovered from the couple’s home. Expert witnesses are expected to testify about DNA evidence and crime-scene reconstruction.
The expected testimony also includes analysis of surveillance video showing Bhatt at various locations. A public works official is scheduled to discuss household water consumption as prosecutors examine an increase in water use at the home, Courthouse News Service reported.
