New court records show human hairs were found on a reciprocating saw tied to the Mamta Kafle Bhatt case, as Naresh Bhatt awaits trial this fall.
MANASSAS PARK, Va. — New forensic evidence filed in the case against Naresh Bhatt shows investigators found human hairs and hair fragments on a reciprocating saw recovered from his Manassas Park home.
Prosecutors have accused him of killing his wife Mamta Kafle Bhatt inside their home.
Naresh Bhatt, who has pleaded not guilty, remains in jail without bond ahead of his murder trial, which is scheduled to begin Oct. 5.
According to court documents, a certificate of analysis from the Virginia Department of Forensic Science was sent to police on April 29, but was filed and made public on May 19.
It included a piece of evidence marked “item 316” and labeled as “hair-like strands from a saw”.
In the documents, it was revealed that “hair-like strands” were taken from a reciprocating saw inside the home.
Investigators previously confirmed that a reciprocating saw, which is a handheld power tool commonly used to cut through wood, metal or concrete, was among the evidence seized from the couple’s home.
RELATED: How police used DNA evidence to charge Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s husband with murder
The hairs were examined using stereomicroscopy and were further examined using compound microscopy.
The report’s “Results/Interpretations” section listed that the item consisted of “3 human hairs, 13 human hair fragments, apparent fibers, and apparent debris.”
According to the report, the three hairs “may be suitable for nuclear DNA testing” and were referred to the Forensic Biology Section for further analysis. The report also stated that “the human hair fragments were not suitable for nuclear DNA testing.”
The filing adds to previously disclosed forensic evidence in the case. In December 2024, prosecutors said investigators found blood matching Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s DNA in the bedroom and bathroom of the family’s Manassas Park home, along with blood they believed belonged to her on the same saw.
Police have said they believe Mamta Kafle Bhatt was dismembered, though investigators have never publicly identified a murder weapon.
Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo previously said DNA evidence was crucial in securing the grand jury indictment against Bhatt in December 2024. Before the indictment, Bhatt had been charged only with concealing a dead body.
RELATED: ‘We want to find her’ | Manassas Park police chief shares updates on ongoing search for missing Mamta Kafle Bhatt
Defense attorney Frank Salvato, who has handled murder cases involving missing victims, said the new evidence could significantly impact the defense if additional testing links the hairs to Mamta Kafle Bhatt.
“It would be very detrimental to the defense if there is follow-up testing to connect the hairs to the victim in this case,” Salvato said. “That would obviously be a devastating blow to the defense.”
However, Salvato also questioned the timing of the testing.
“What I think the defense will challenge is why this late,” he said. “They’ve had that evidence for quite some time, and it seems a little bit late in the game for the defense to be able to deal with it. But if introduced, it would be devastating.”
The case has generated extensive evidence and filings. Last year, the trial was delayed until October after Bhatt’s attorney at the time said he needed additional time to review what he described as “mountains of evidence.”
RELATED: Trial for Naresh Bhatt continued until October 2026
Several motion hearings are scheduled ahead of the trial, including June 25 at 9 a.m., Aug. 13 at 1 p.m. and Sept. 25 at 1 p.m.
Mamta Kafle Bhatt’s family, who traveled from Nepal, continued caring for her daughter, who was one year old when the investigation began.Â
“I would talk to her every day once or twice,” said her mother, Gita Kafle.
She and Mamta’s brother Mahesh Kafle, spoke to WUSA9 Monday in November 2024.
“She supports everybody. She was very kind-hearted to everybody. Not only to me and my family, everybody,” said Mahesh Kafle of his sister.
Both fought back tears as they described her.
“My daughter was very hard working. A very sincere person, very honest person. I haven’t seen anybody like her. She was very honest. My daughter was a very strong, hard-working, intelligent person,” said Gita Kafle. “Even when she was very small, she was very sincere and honest”.
Tuesday night they told WUSA9 they were still in the US, caring for Mamta’s daughter and that they were doing “okay” and that she was doing well.
