blue mountains as receptacle...

Murder in the mountains: husband charged
DYLAN WELCH
2/06/2008 4:31:00 PM

A husband took members of his family for a drive to the Blue Mountains with the bodies of his wife and a girl in the car, police allege.

A police statement tendered to Blacktown Local Court in Sydney's west this afternoon states that Sanjay Mehta allegedly murdered his wife Jyoti, 38, and a nine-year-old girl in Dunn Way, Blacktown.

Mehta then placed their bodies in a vehicle and took two other family members for a drive to Echo Point lookout at Katoomba, the document states.

While the other occupants of the car went for a short walk, Mehta took the two bodies from the vehicle and threw them over a cliff, police say. They landed 150 metres down on the canyon floor.

Mehta then drove home, police allege.

The Indian national, employed as an engineer, met his wife on the internet in July 2006. She moved to Australia to marry him in May the following year.

The police facts said Faye Oldfield, from the Jessie Street Domestic Violence Service, said the wife had come to her in January this year after being verbally abused by her husband, who threatened to kill her or have her deported.

The man's former wife, who moved back to India after their marriage breakdown, returned to Australia on May 26 and had moved back into the family home.

The police document also states that Mrs Mehta had told her younger sister that her relationship with Mehta "was very strained and that he had recently been physically violent towards her".

Mehta did not appear during the brief court hearing this afternoon and did not apply for bail.
He will remain in custody until his next appearance in the same court on July 21.

Police will allege he murdered his wife and the girl in the family home, then drove them to the Blue Mountains before throwing them off a cliff.

They say he has shown no remorse and has continuously denied his involvement, despite an "extremely strong'' prosecution case.

Mehta reported his wife and the girl missing on May 5.

Police say two bushwalkers saw the woman's body at the bottom of Echo Point lookout yesterday. The girl's body was found nearby about 6pm.

A neighbour said Mehta had a son and a daughter from a previous relationship, aged about 16 and 10 respectively, who also lived at the house.

He said the mother of the charged man's children was now living at the Dunn Way house.
"The mum lived in India or something but she came back to look after the kids because the other lady went missing," he said.

Another Dunn Way resident said: "It's just terrible. She was just lovely."

Blacktown crime manager Gary Hutchen said the bodies were in "a state of decomposition when found".

The bodies have yet to be formally identified.

Bad weather and light at the crime scene prevented the bodies from being removed last night.

Police expect to retrieve the bodies today.

http://www.bluemountainsgazette.com.au/news/national/national/general/murder-in-the-mountains-husband-charged/781368.aspx?storypage=0 accessed 28 August 2009

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