MANASSAS PARK, Va. — The disappearance of Mamta Kafle Bhatt, a young mother and nurse, has drawn widespread attention since she was last seen in late July.
Though presumed dead, her body has never been found. Now, her husband, Naresh Bhatt, faces charges of her murder.
He was scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, but the hearing was postponed to Wednesday, to allow for a translator.
Tuesday night, WUSA9 spoke with two legal professionals familiar with "no body" murder cases. They shared insight into the challenges both sides face.
Frank Salvato, a criminal defense attorney, notes that defending Naresh Bhatt could be difficult, especially with evidence already in the public eye. He adds, "It's going to be a very difficult case for the defense."
"They're going to be left with those two scenarios. Did someone else do something nefarious to her or did she voluntarily leave her friends and family without a trace um without any communication without anything along those lines. That is, if that's gonna be a very, very difficult case for the defense, in my opinion," said Salvato.
He said Naresh Bhatt's inconsistent statements to police, the community and the media are major liabilities.
"The prosecutor is going to go through those statements a bit by bit by bit to show every single inconsistency. Were they going through marital issues, where they going through problems," said Salvato.
He said all of these things are part of the circumstantial evidence in this case.
"Then you kind of have what I call, that watch out moment, that difficult moment where the, government, the prosecutor is gonna put in all of that evidence with regard to the blood that was found in the home. Sometimes if there's blood in a sink, there is blood in a bathtub, there's a small amount of blood in a car, that's easy to explain from the defense perspective. If there is a significant amount of blood loss in a house, that is gonna be, I think a really difficult part of the case for the defense to overcome, to create any kind of reasonable doubt," said Salvato.
"From a prosecutor's perspective, the next best thing to a confession is a lie," said Cass Castillo, a special counsel for the Florida Attorney General with experience in "no body" murder cases.
He said he's prosecuted six "no body" murder cases.
"Most prosecutors believe it's a disadvantage to not have a body. More often than not, it's an advantage," said Castillo.
He told WUSA9 in most cases like this, the prosecution will need to prove two things. That Mamta Kafle Bhatt is dead and that her death was the result of a criminal act. Castillo emphasized that the prosecution can build a narrative about who she was — a mother and a nurse — strengthening their case.
"She's a sympathetic figure under any circumstances. It doesn't matter what those circumstances were. You know, she's a sympathetic figure and you, as a prosecutor can just take advantage of that. The juror is gonna want to hold somebody responsible for that. They're not gonna compromise their obligation to making you prove your case, but they're gonna want you to prove your case. That's been my experience," said Cass.
Castillo believes the prosecution will ultimately succeed, based on the evidence already made public.
Initially, the defense had sought to speed up the trial, but with new charges, the roles may now reverse. Experts suggest that prosecutors will push for a faster trial while the defense may try to slow proceedings down.
The Commonwealth’s Attorney indicated that the trial may not occur until the fall of next year.