MANASSAS, Va. — A digital forensic investigator testified Wednesday that Naresh Bhatt searched online about a spouse disappearing months before his wife vanished, while defense attorneys questioned what investigators could establish from records missing timestamps.
Katherine Zaimis, of the Prince William County Police Digital Forensics Unit, told jurors that searches from March 2024 included “what happens if a spouse disappears” and “can I divorce if wife lost.”
The defense challenged how those records should be interpreted. Many searches had no timestamps, attorneys noted, leaving investigators unable to establish their exact timing, sequence or location. The records also could not establish why someone entered a particular query.
The testimony came on the trial’s 13th day. Bhatt faces charges of first-degree murder, concealing a dead body and defiling a dead body. Prosecutors accuse him of killing his wife, Mamta Kafle Bhatt, and dismembering her remains. Her body has not been found.
According to FOX 5 DC’s courtroom reporting, Zaimis also described searches involving meat cutters, Dollar Tree knife sharpeners and saws intended for wood. Other queries concerned melatonin doses for adults and children.
Questions about the couple’s daughter appeared in the digital records as well. Zaimis testified that Bhatt searched “can I donate my baby to my friend?” Investigators also found searches about obtaining a passport for a baby.
The browsing history covered travel between Delhi and Dulles and whether a person could reverse a car sale to CarMax.
Jurors heard that Mamta’s contact entry in Bhatt’s phone had been renamed “BAD MEMORY,” followed by a running emoji. The evidence included messages about another woman and records of eight calls Bhatt placed to his wife after her disappearance.
A video enhancement expert also testified Wednesday, reviewing recordings from the home and several trash compactor locations. The footage showed Bhatt wearing gloves as he discarded small bags, according to the testimony.
The digital evidence followed Tuesday’s testimony from an FBI expert about cellphone locations and vehicle movements. Those records generally put the phones and Bhatt’s vehicle in the same area, with three exceptions. In one, Mamta’s phone stayed in place while his vehicle went to Chantilly.
Neighbors from three households testified Tuesday that Bhatt had not told them his wife was missing.
Concern about Mamta’s whereabouts reached police after she stopped arriving for shifts at UVA Health Prince William Medical Center. She missed work Aug. 1, 2024. The next day, after two missed shifts, co-workers asked officers to check on her at the couple’s Heather Court home.
Bhatt initially told officers he did not consider his wife missing and said he had last seen her July 29. Relatives and friends disputed the suggestion that she would leave her baby behind.
He reported her missing Aug. 5, telling police she had talked about leaving and seeking a divorce. Authorities designated the disappearance involuntary later that day.
Police arrested Bhatt on Aug. 22, 2024, after investigators found extensive bloodstaining in the main bedroom and bathroom. According to court records described in the supplied reporting, investigators also recovered a power saw with hair fragments and evidence connecting him to several trash disposal sites.
Bhatt has remained in custody since his arrest in August 2024. The trial is scheduled to continue Thursday, Oct. 29, for Day 14.
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