MANASSAS PARK, Va. — It's now been more than 2 months since anyone last saw Mamta Kafle Bhatt. Her husband, Naresh Bhatt, is awaiting trial. He was arrested on Aug. 22 and charged with 'concealing a dead body'. His trial date is set for Dec. 9. He remains behind bars on no bond.
On Monday night, a group gathered at the Manassas Park Community Center for a 'Healing Together', a forum for domestic violence awareness and support.
"This event was inspired by one of our beloved residents, Mamta Kafle Bhatt, who has been missing since July," said Del. Michelle Maldonado, who represents the 20th District in Virginia.
"So many people were coming up and saying 'What happened to her is happening to me at home'. 'What if more happens to me?' and what we realized is people didn't know what resources were available to them," said Del. Maldonado
On Monday night, Helen Zurita shared her story with the crowd.
"I was stabbed 235 times," she told the group.
In 1995, Zurita, who was pregnant at the time, says the father of her soon-to-be child stabbed her more than 200 times.
"I was 3 months pregnant and they told me they were going to have to abort my child so I could live. I said no," said Zurita.
She and her daughter both survived.
Zurita told WUSA9 she shared her story with the group, in hopes that it would potentially save lives.
As she spoke, a candle glowed from the corner, next to a single rose, in honor of Mamta Kafle Bhatt.
Many in the crowd Monday night, have been fighting for justice for Mamta.
"I'm very upset, very angry that we could not provide this information for her, but now we are here. Because of her, we are here together," said Prabha Bhattarai Deuja.
While we still don't know exactly what unfolded inside Mamta's home, organizers at Monday's forum say it's brought to light the fact that this community needs more information about what resources exist.
"It is a big tragedy but out of tragedy, we need to come together and find a way through. If this event touches one person then we've done our job," said Manassas Park Vice Mayor Alanna Mensing.
Monday's event featured a panel discussion and organizations that offered different options, from social services to emotional healing.
"One of the things a lot of survivors talk about is how the emotional and verbal and psychological stays with them, so we help you to understand how to master self-rescue through emotional wellness and holistic care tool kits," said Gigi McMillen, the founder of Purple Runway.
As for Zurita, she hopes sharing her story will help other victims, become survivors.
"Even though I'm a victim, I'm a survivor," she told the crowd.
She told WUSA9 that her message to anyone going through this is "You can survive. You can find a way to take that inner strength that you have and you build upon that".
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RESOURCES