Harshita Brella's haunting final days as cops hunt down murder suspect husband

Harshita Brella was just 24 years old when - and harrowing details have since emerged which shed light on her tragic final days.

As a young woman who police described as having 'her whole life ahead of her', was found in a vehicle parked in East London - nearly 100 miles away from the shared house where she'd lived in Corby, Northamptonshire. A post-mortem carried out at Leicester Royal Infirmary on Friday, November 15, established that Harshita had been murdered, while her husband has been named as a key suspect in the case.

Lamba is now believed to have fled the country, with dozens of detectives working to find him, while piecing together the horrifying details surrounding As police work 'around the clock' to establish the circumstances which led to such a horrific crime, the looks at Harshita's haunting final days.

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Restraining order

On Wednesday, November 13, police received a call 'regarding concerns for Harshita’s welfare', after which officers were deployed to her home on Skegness Walk, Corby. It was then that, after officers got no answer, a missing person investigation began. Fast-track enquiries were made and, devastatingly, a woman's body identified as Harshita's was found inside the boot of a car on Brisbane Road, Ilford, in the early hours of Thursday, November 14.

Northamptonshire Police has now confirmed that Harshita had been subjected to domestic violence during her short life and, back in early September, a Domestic Violence Protection Order (DVPO) was handed down at to protect her from her abuser.

Under this order, which lasted just 28 days, the perpetrator of the violence was banned from visiting Harshita at her workplace. This person was prevented from molesting her, from threatening violence, or intimidating, harassing or pestering her. They were also ordered not to encourage or instruct others to contact her in any way.

This order was served by and implemented by magistrates. In the months since, no formal charges have been recorded by the court regarding this person, who was released following the court hearing and ordered to pay the full costs.

Northamptonshire Police made a mandatory self-referral to the IOPC after having had ‘previous contact’ with Harshita. It's believed Harshita was likely murdered by someone ‘known to her’, and it's believed there is no wider risk to the public concerning this 'shocking and distressing' crime.

Neighbour's fears

A neighbour previously spoke with the about an aggressive argument she'd overheard taking place between a man and a woman in Harshita’s house on the same day officers were contacted about the young wife’s welfare. Single mother Kelly Philp, 41, who lived next door to Harshita, told us how she'd heard a female sound frightened during the heated row.

Kelly, whose bedroom shares a wall with a room in , recalled: "I heard a commotion between a man and a woman and I heard banging around. They were arguing in a different language so I couldn't understand what was being said.

"But it sounded angry and there were raised voices and the woman sounded scared. I had a funeral to attend the day after and had my own daughter to look after so I didn’t call police - I just thought it was a relationship argument."

In the early hours of Saturday morning, Kelly says she heard a back gate slam loudly and two males arguing, again in a foreign language. Kelly said: "My initial feeling when I saw police was that someone must have been hurt as I already had my suspicions. I feel really on edge now and vulnerable. I feel so sad about the loss of the lass. I can't get over it, I can't believe it."

According to Kelly, the residence had been occupied by around five people, who she thinks are Eastern European. She also believes Harshita lived there for around one year. Kelly went on to state that last year, as many as 12 residents were living at the property, adding that people ‘come and go’ from the house.

The reports that the number of occupants has gone down and, after some noise complaints were resolved last year, the residence has been mostly peaceful, according to neighbours.

'Hellish' end and final journey

In an update given yesterday (Sunday, November 17), officers confirmed that they believed Lamba had murdered Harshita earlier this month, before travelling some 96 miles from Corby to Ilford. Lamba then fled the country, although at the time, police have not stated where he is thought to have headed.

One local told the "They seemed to be focusing on a car. It's horrific. It's quite an unsafe area. That poor woman must have gone through hell. It's deeply shocking. I've felt sick. She must have gone through so much pain."

They continued: "Officers swarmed all over the street and were here for hours. It looked incredibly serious. There was screaming on the street earlier in the week. It's rough around here so I didn't bat an eye lid. There's always drug dealing and attacks and all sorts."

At a press conference held in Kettering, Chief Inspector Paul Cash, shared: "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."

Those with any information that could assist with the case have been urged to contact the incident room by calling 101, quoting incident number Operation Westcott. Alternatively, information can be submitted via the online public portal at or by making a confidential call to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Do you have a story to share? Email me at julia.banim@reachplc.com

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