DNA From Laptop Cracks 8-Year-Old Double Murder in US
US investigators cracked the case through DNA extracted from Hameed's company-issued laptop, which matched a blood droplet found at the crime scene.
Visakhapatnam:Eight years after a mother and her young son had been found brutally murdered in their New Jersey apartment, US authorities have filed charges against an Indian national, achieving a major breakthrough in a case that had gone cold. Nazeer Hameed, a former colleague of the victim's husband, has been charged with murder and related offenses in connection with the March 2017 deaths of Sasikala Narra (38) and her six-year-old son Anish at their Fox Meadow Apartments residence in Maple Shade. Sasikala Narra from Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, had gone to the United States for work.
US investigators cracked the case through DNA extracted from Hameed's company-issued laptop, which matched a blood droplet found at the crime scene. On March 23, 2017, Hanu Narra, the husband of the victim, returned home from work to discover his wife and son dead in their apartment. Both victims had been stabbed multiple times and showed defensive wounds. Initial suspicion fell on Hanu Narra himself, with relatives alleging he may have killed his wife and son having been involved in an extramarital affair. However, DNA evidence found at the scene did not match Hanu Narra profile, leading to his release. Investigators collected multiple blood samples from the crime scene, including one droplet that belonged to neither victims nor Hanu Narra. Hameed emerged as a person of interest after police discovered he had previously been accused of stalking Hanu Narra, with whom he worked. The suspect lived within walking distance of the victims' home, but relocated to India six months after the murders.
US investigators reached out to Hameed in India multiple times, requesting a DNA sample, but he repeatedly refused. In 2024, officials obtained a court order to seize Hameed's company-issued laptop. DNA extracted from the device matched the unknown blood droplet from the 2017 crime scene, linking Hameed to the murders.
Patrick Thornton, chief of investigations for the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office, confirmed that Hameed had been working in the US on a visa at the time of the incident. But Hameed has remained in India since his return.
