Representative image showing a dead body.
Credit: iStock Photo
Chandigarh: The body of a young woman, identified as a Haryana-based model, was found in a canal in the Kharkhoda area of Sonipat, the police said on Monday.
Sheetal alias Simmi, who worked as a model making music videos, lived with her sister in Panipat and had left home for a shoot on June 14. When she failed to return, her family filed a missing complaint with the Panipat Police.
"Police received information that the body of a young woman was found in the canal who was later identified as Sheetal. A police complaint was registered in Panipat regarding her going missing. A postmortem will be done and further investigations are on," ACP Kharkhoda, Sonipat, Jeet Singh told reporters.
Another police official from Sonipat confirmed that Sheetal, who was in her mid-20s, was found in the late hours of Sunday.
He further informed that a car was also found in the canal, which allegedly belonged to a man from Panipat's Istana, who swam to safety.
"Preliminary investigations suggest that the woman was in this car with the man. We cannot rule out the possibility of murder, as the body shows signs of injury. The family has also made certain allegations. We are awaiting the postmortem report and will soon apprehend the man for questioning," he said.
A police official from Panipat, where the complaint was earlier registered, said they are awaiting the postmortem report from Sonipat.
"Once we receive the report, we will know the cause of death. So far, in the FIR, a missing person complaint has been registered and now the body has been recovered from the canal," he said.