Judge waives preliminary hearing in missing person case Naresh Bhatt

MANASSAS, Va. — Naresh Bhatt was back in a Prince William County courtroom Thursday. Investigators believe the 37-year-old man killed his wife, Mamta Kafle Bhatt, but he has not been charged with murder.

A judge has decided to halt Naresh Bhatt's preliminary hearing on charges of concealing a corpse.

Lawyers we spoke with say Naresh Bhatt's public defender is trying to expedite the case so he can go to trial sooner. The hearing was scheduled for October 24, when prosecutors will present all the evidence they have against Naresh Bhatt.

With that hearing canceled, the next step would be to take the case to a grand jury in district court. However, Naresh Bhatt's public defender says he plans to waive that as well, which would mean the case would go straight to trial.

Throughout the trial, the defence counsel stressed that the evidence presented by the prosecution was weak, particularly because Naresh Bhatt was only charged with concealing a corpse and Mamta's body was never found.

The community supporting Mamta Kafle Bhatt termed this a legal twist.

Holly Wirth, Mamta Kafle Bhatt's former colleague, said Thursday's hearing should not be seen as a setback.

“Mr. Bhatt's defense counsel has stated on the record that he believes the evidence is quite weak. So we know the sooner they bring this to trial, the more likely it is that the Commonwealth will not be able to strengthen their position,” their claim reads. “I think it's understandable that they want to bring him to trial on this charge as soon as possible. I know in my heart that there will be more charges to come. We cannot look at this as a setback. We just have to look at this as a step until more serious charges are brought,” Wirth said.

It is still unclear when Naresh Bhatt will appear in court again.

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