MANASSAS, Va. (CN) — On an August day in 2024, Jose Ayala sat in his truck mulling the astounding news: Naresh Bhatt was in jail on charges connected to the disappearance of his wife, 28-year-old Mamta Kafle Bhatt.
Ayala had recently agreed to cut the grass at the Bhatts’ Manassas Park home, and the landscaper had a favorable impression of him. Bhatt had given Ayala a saw. But with Bhatt behind bars, Ayala wondered what he should do with it.
Now Bhatt, 39, is on trial in Prince William County, Virginia, Circuit Court, charged with murder, defiling a body and concealing a body. He has pleaded not guilty. On Wednesday, the 10th day of Bhatt’s trial, the landscaper took the stand as a witness for the prosecution…