Rabale Police Arrest Wife and Her Boyfriend for Murder of Navi Mumbai Man
The Rabale MIDC police have arrested a 40-year-old woman and her boyfriend in Ghansoli for allegedly murdering her husband, dismembering his body, and dumping his remains in the Gavli Dev hill area of Rabale. The arrest took place nearly 11 months after the victim first went missing in August 2025.
The police identified the accused as Sunita Baliram Kushwaha, 40, and her boyfriend, Rahul Dashrath Prajapati, 30, an autorickshaw driver from Ghansoli. The victim was identified as Sunita’s husband, 50-year-old Baliram Kushwaha.
According to the police, Baliram disappeared in August 2025 after telling his family he was leaving for the Asang Baba Ashram in Uttar Pradesh following a minor argument at home. When he failed to return after several months, his brother approached the Rabale MIDC police, who registered a missing person’s case.
The investigation took a turn when officers noticed that Sunita had never reported her husband missing. Investigators also discovered that she had rented out the family’s house, moved to Ghansoli with her children, and started living with Prajapati without informing any of her relatives.
Technical analysis of mobile phone records revealed frequent contact between Sunita and Prajapati. During police interrogation, the two allegedly confessed to plotting the murder because Baliram had become an obstacle to their relationship.
Investigators alleged that Sunita sent her children to their aunt’s house before killing her husband on the night of August 8, 2025, while he was asleep. The body was then allegedly cut into three pieces, wrapped in a bedsheet and gunny bags, and transported in Prajapati’s autorickshaw. The suspects allegedly dumped the remains at different locations in the Gavli Dev hill area.
The Rabale MIDC police registered an FIR on July 10, 2026, under Sections 103(1) (murder), 238 (causing disappearance of evidence), and 3(5) (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Both accused were arrested, produced before a local court, and remanded to police custody until July 17. Police are currently searching the Gavli Dev hill area to recover the victim's remains.
