Corby murder investigation – update from Chief Inspector Paul Cash.
Firstly, on behalf of Northamptonshire Police, I would like to express my deepest and heartfelt condolences to Harshita’s family and friends, and to everyone who knew and loved her.
Harshita was a young woman in her early 20s, with her whole life ahead of her and everything to live for, and it is absolutely tragic that her life has been cut short in this way.
A murder investigation was launched after the body of a woman, who we have now named as Harshita, was found in a car in east London.
This finding came about after we received a call on Wednesday, November 13, regarding concerns for Harshita’s welfare.
Officers were deployed to her home address in Skegness Walk, Corby, and after getting no answer, a missing person investigation was launched.
Fast-track enquiries were made which sadly led to the discovery of a woman’s body inside the boot of a vehicle in Brisbane Road in the Ilford area of London, in the early hours of Thursday, November 14.
A forensic postmortem examination, which took place at Leicester Royal Infirmary on Friday, November 15, established that Harshita had been murdered.
Officers and detectives from the East Midlands Special Operations Major Crime Unit and Northamptonshire Police, working with colleagues from the Metropolitan Police, have been working around the clock to establish the circumstances behind Harshita’s death, including the exact location and timeframe in which it took place.
We have followed a number of lines of investigation and carried out numerous inquiries and we are now able to provide a further update.
Our inquiries lead us to suspect that Harshita was murdered in Northamptonshire earlier this month by her husband Pankaj Lamba. We suspect Lamba transported Harshita’s body from Northamptonshire to Ilford by car. We believe he has now fled the country. We are releasing an image of Pankaj Lamba with this statement.
More than 60 detectives are working on the case and are continuing to follow numerous lines of inquiry, including house to house, property searches, CCTV and ANPR. We are of course continuing to appeal for any information that will help us piece together exactly what happened as we work to get justice for Harshita.
I urge anyone listening to or reading this statement, that if you saw anything suspicious in the past week or have any information, no matter how small, please contact us. We would always rather receive well-meaning information that turns out to be nothing as opposed to not receiving it all.
While we are satisfied there is no wider risk to the public, we understand how shocking and distressing such an incident can be for the local community. Our Neighbourhood officers will continue to provide additional patrols in Corby in the coming days for reassurance, and anyone with any concerns is welcome to approach one of these officers who will be happy to help.
Anyone who has any information that could help detectives bring Harshita’s killer to justice, can contact the incident room by calling 101, quoting incident number Operation Westcott.
Alternatively information can be submitted via our online public portal at www.mipp.police.uk or by call Crimestoppers, in confidence, on 0800 555111.
Thank you for your support and assistance in helping us bring Harshita’s killer to justice, and we will provide further updates when we can.
Original Release:
Detectives investigating the death of a woman from Corby have named the victim as 24-year-old Harshita Brella (pictured).
A murder investigation was launched after the body of a woman, who police have now named as Harshita, was found in a car in east London. The finding came about after Northamptonshire Police received a call on Wednesday, November 13, regarding concerns for Harshita’s welfare.
Officers were deployed to her home address in Skegness Walk, Corby, and after getting no answer, launched a missing person investigation. Fast-track enquiries were made which sadly led to the discovery of a woman’s body inside the boot of a vehicle in Brisbane Road in the Ilford area of London, in the early hours of Thursday, November 14.
A forensic postmortem examination, which took place at Leicester Royal Infirmary on Friday, November 15, established that Harshita had been murdered.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Johnny Campbell from the East Midlands Special Operations Major Crime Unit (EMSOU), said: “First of all, I want to express my heartfelt condolences to everyone who loved Harshita Brella.
“She was a young woman in her early 20s with her whole life ahead of her and it is absolutely tragic that her life has been cut short in this way.
“Detectives from EMSOU and Northamptonshire Police are working around the clock to establish the circumstances behind her death, including the exact location and timeframe in which it took place.”
DCI Campbell is appealing to anyone who may have information about this incident to come forward.
He said: “Although we believe Harshita was attacked by someone known to her, we are keeping an open mind, and would appeal to anyone who knew her to contact us with any relevant information they may have.
“If you saw anything suspicious in the past week or have any information, no matter how small, please contact us. We would always rather receive well-meaning information that turns out to be nothing as opposed to not receiving it all.”
Police officers are satisfied there is no wider risk to the public as a result of this incident, however extra patrols will be taking place in Corby in the coming days for reassurance purposes, and anyone with any concerns is welcome to approach one of these officers who will be happy to help.
Anyone who has any information that could help detectives bring Harshita’s killer to justice, is asked to call police on 101 quoting incident number 24000678713.
Alternatively information can be submitted via an online portal: Public Portal (mipp.police.uk) or by calling Crimestoppers, in confidence, on 0800 555111.
Northamptonshire Police has also made a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) due to previous contact between the Force and the victim.
