Husband of murdered Indian woman, daughter in New Zealand in deep shock

TAURANGA - Indian national Dev Sangha, whose wife and 18-month-old daughter were found dead in their Tauranga home in New Zealand, is overwhelmed with grief, as the accused man is a trusted family friend.

Dev had been holidaying in India when he was informed about his wife Ravneet’s death and, initially, the disappearance of their daughter Anna.

He touched down at the Auckland International Airport on Tuesday.

“He can’t even actually talk. He can’t actually believe that that can happen to him. He can only say that he’s in very deep shock. Dev said he’s lost everything. His wife is gone, his child is gone,” The New Zealand Herald quoted Daljit Singh, a spokesman for the family, as saying.

“He’s very grieved and the family is so in shock and the community all over in New Zealand are also in deep shock,” he added.

Singh also said that Dev had left his wife and child in the safe care of the 23-year-old man, who has been charged with murder.

“This was the reason why he went to India, because he felt his wife and daughter were safe in his care … they just could never believe he could do something like that,” he added.

He further informed that pathologists had completed the post-mortem on Ravneet’s body, and were to perform an examination on Anna’s body today.

Dev will then see his wife and child for the first time since his return, and he is likely to make the arrangements for their funerals, which will most probably be held in Tauranga later this week.

Ravneet was found dead in a house in Otumoetai, a Tauranga suburb, on Sunday evening, while Anna’s body was found on Tuesday afternoon- almost 20 hours later - as it had been concealed in the house.

The man charged over the incident had appeared in Counties Manukau District Court on Monday afternoon.

He was granted interim name suppression and remanded to reappear in Tauranga District Court on Thursday, when further charges are likely to be laid. (ANI)