Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, May 15: In a chilling case reminiscent of the Meerut “blue drum” murder, a woman from Maharashtra allegedly killed her lover with the help of her husband, brother and another accomplice before stuffing the body into a drum and dumping it in a drain in Thane district.
The incident came to light after a man identified as Arbaz Maqsood Ali Khan, a resident of Mumbra in Thane, went missing on April 3.
According to police, Khan had left home saying he was travelling to Dadar for work but never returned. After repeated attempts to trace him failed, his father lodged a missing person complaint at the Mumbra police station.
During the investigation, police analysed Khan’s call records and location details. Officials found that Khan’s last known location was in the Vasai area. The mobile phone location of his girlfriend Mehjabeen Sheikh was also traced to the same area.
Based on suspicion, police detained Mehjabeen Sheikh for questioning.
“Initially, Mehjabeen refused to give any details, but upon rigorous questioning, she confessed to killing Khan with the help of her husband, brother and his friend,” said Priya Dhankne, Additional Commissioner of Police.
Police said the accused had allegedly planned to extort money from Khan. When they failed to obtain money from him, the group allegedly tied his hands, assaulted him with a plastic pipe and later killed him.
Investigators said the accused then stuffed Khan’s body into a green drum and dumped it in a nearby drain in the Mumbra area.
Police have arrested Mehjabeen Sheikh and her brother Tariq Sheikh in connection with the murder. Her husband Hasan and another accomplice are currently absconding.
Officials said Tariq Sheikh was also involved in other criminal cases registered earlier.
A case has been registered under charges of murder and criminal conspiracy, and further investigation is underway.
The case has drawn comparisons with the sensational Meerut “blue drum” murder reported earlier this year.
In that case, Muskaan Rastogi, along with her lover Sahil, allegedly murdered her husband Saurabh Rajput in February 2025. According to investigators, the accused mixed sleeping pills into Rajput’s food before killing him in his sleep, dismembering the body and sealing the remains inside a drum filled with wet cement.