Caring man, didn’t appear scared: How Aftab Poonawala’s new girlfriend described him

Can you really, true know a person? The answer, it seems, is no and Aftab Poonawala’s new girlfriend has learnt this the hard way.

As investigations continue into the gruesome murder of Shraddha Walkar allegedly at the hands of her live-in partner Aftab, it’s been reported that the 28-year-old food blogger had a new girlfriend — a psychologist.

The woman is now undergoing counselling as she is in a state of shock following the emergence of the details of the case and told the police that she had no inkling of the crime Aftab allegedly committed.

As Aftab Poonawala undergoes the narco test — it begins today, we take a closer look at what the new woman in his life had to say about him.

The beginning of a new romance

The woman, who is a practicing psychologist, has told the police that she first came in contact with Aftab through Bumble — the same dating app he had used to meet Shraddha too in 2019.

The woman told the authorities that he had initiated contact with her on 30 May, just a few days after he had allegedly murdered Shraddha and then chopped her body into pieces, scattering them around the Mehrauli forest.

Also read: Shraddha Walkar murder: What digital safety do dating apps offer and how can you stay safe online?

Investigators have found that Aftab used the Bumble, the dating app, quite frequently and after the death of Shraddha, he dated around 15-20 girls, many of which he met on the same dating app.

According to the authorities, she visited Aftab’s house in Delhi’s Chhattarpur Pahadi, where he allegedly killed Shraddha, live-in partner and stored her body parts, in October. She said she stayed at the house for a few hours but didn’t find anything suspicious. The two dated for a brief period and she only visited the house twice. Later, she left Delhi for work,” said an officer.

‘Caring’ Aftab and his gifts

The woman has described Aftab as a caring and ‘absolutely normal’ person. She added that while she visited Aftab at his home, he didn’t seem mentally unstable nor did he appear scared.

According to the police, she also told them that Aftab often spoke to her about Mumbai and his life there and had also visited the financial capital in September.

An official told the Indian Express that the woman said that Aftab looked like a confident man to her and she never suspected anything. “As per her statement, he treated her well.”

Describing Aftab and his habits, she revealed that he would smoke a lot and used to roll his cigarettes himself. However, he used to keep talking about quitting the habit, she added.

News agency ANI further quoted her claiming that Aftab was very fond of different types of food and often used to order non-vegetarian food from different restaurants. He had told her how the chefs decorate food in restaurants.

Also read: Has Aftab Poonawala ‘inspired’ other killers? Copycat crimes explained

She also informed the authorities that Aftab had a collection of different deodorants and perfumes and that he would often gift her perfumes as presents.

The police also recovered a fancy ring from her, which she claimed was gifted to her by Aftab on 12 October. However, the ongoing probe has led investigators to believe that the ring belonged to Shraddha.

Earlier, Aftab had reportedly told the police that while dismembering Shraddha’s body after murdering her on 18 May, he had taken off the ring and then presented it to a girl he had invited to his residence in October.

Narco test awaits

As the woman reels from the gruesome details of the case, Aftab will undergo his narco-analysis test today. Forensic Science Lab (FSL) officials said that they had completed his polygraph test and that there were a few discrepancies.

Aftab’s narco test will be conducted inside the Tihar jail in the presence of FSL and police officers.

The police have so far recovered more than 16 pieces of bones from the Mehrauli forest and have sent them to FSL for further authentication. They have also recovered a mini-saw, one of the weapons used by Aftab to dismember the body of his live-in-partner Shraddha Walkar, from the forest near the accused’s flat in Mehrauli.

With inputs from agencies

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