GUILTY CA - Jay, 56, & Karishma Dhanak, 20, murdered, Anaheim Hills, 21 May 2007

[KrisNine]

No new information this morning.

I think you're onto something, Bobbisangel. It looks like this family was heavily in debt and may have gotten into business with some shady characters. What a nightmare for the survivors.

 

[real eyes]

This is so sad. I agree, there is more to the story than they are saying. Does anyone else think it is crazy that the neighbor gave her name and picture to the media (I saw her on the news last night talking about what she saw)??? I would think that with the circumstances of this that they would not give her name, face and house location. I hope that the family and friends get their answers and that the perps are caught and serve a VERY long time in prison.

 

[KrisNine]

^^I think it's crazy that the neighbors have been saying so much on TV and that the papers and news reports are giving the whereabouts of the other daughter (telling where she she goes to school, her name, age and her major) and showing the other daughter being escorted in and out of the family home by LE. Seems a little strange.

Of course, a lot of the info on the daughter would be easy to find out if you did a little research, but still.....

 

[fran]

So the father was involved in mail fraud. That doesnt seem like something anyone would want revenge for. I mean it's not like drug money or whatever. I never heard of gangsters saying oooooooooh I will kill your family you did mail fraud!. You know what i'm sayin?! There has to be more to this story, has to be something else. I saw the picture of the daughter and wow what a beautiful beautiful girl. I wonder if the neighbors who witnessed the beating of the mother are now in danger since the thugs saw them?

Mail fraud may seem like something one might not take revenge for but then you see the amount of money involved and who's taking the fall. It get's a little more intimidating, IMHO.

fran

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1702730.php

...................................snip............................

The family had significant financial obligations, including a $2.5 million fine Jayprakash Dhanak had to pay to the United States Postal Service after pleading guilty to one count of mail fraud in 2003.

According to his lawyer at the time, Rafael Bernardino, Jayprakash Dhanak served up to 2 ½ years in prison. The company that he and his wife worked for, Mastersort, agreed to repay the $3 million that prosecutors say the company netted from 1995 to 1997.

The Dhanaks had a $500,000 mortgage on their house and paid tuition to send both daughters to Fairmont Private School in Anaheim.

It was not immediately clear how the Dhanaks paid those bills. Leela Dhanak's name appears on recent court and state documents in relation to two Los Angeles entities – North American Gaming and Cygnus Enterprises LLC, but lawyers and friends were unclear if these were the family's main source of income.

Police officials said there was no indication Tuesday that the Dhanaks' past legal troubles or current profession were related to the attack at their house.

 

[fran]

I'm interested in this story because it's local for me, plus it's a horrible crime and it appears local LE are baffled.

I would just like to say that I attempted to locate the company the wife was alledged to work for. I'm not good at some of this and much of it is confusing, IMHO. But quite honestly, I'm not going to get into this any further. What I've seen just doesn't look right. IF I'm wrong about the 'connections' of various entitities, this goes out of the State of California.

I don't know exactly what I'm seeing,.............except perhaps 'straw companies.' I think I'm venturing in territory I don't want to know about.

IMHO, there's much more to this story. I believe local authorities are going to find themselves working with higher ups, if you know what I mean, ie. Feds. Of course I could be wrong which is why I'm not going to place any links or name any names.

I do believe, this is going to turn out that the parents had no idea who they were dealing with. I'll try to keep up to date on it and let you all know if I find anything out.

What a shame, such a tragic story. I hope the surviving daughter remains safe and makes it through this difficult time without too much difficulty.

JMHO
fran

 

[Indy Gal]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18885074/

ANAHEIM, Calif. - Charred remains found on a hiking trail earlier this week have been identified as those of the father of a family that was brutally attacked and their house burned, authorities said.
The coroner used dental records to determine the remains were those of 56-year-old Jayprakash Dhanak, Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez said Friday.

more at link

 

[JBean]

Suspect identified in deaths of Anaheim Hills father, daughter

Former boyfriend of surviving daughter arrested in Phoenix airport carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh

HE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERA Van Nuys man carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh has been arrested at a Phoenix airport in connection with the deaths of two Anaheim residents last week, the attempted murder of another and a arson, Maricopa County Superior Court officials confirmed Tuesday.
snip
Murtaza was connected with the crime through telephone toll records that revealed that his telephone was used on the day of the murders less than two miles from the crime scene and about 50 minutes before the attack began, documents say.


http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1712023.php

 

[philamena]

OMG. Guess we should have known an ex boyfriend or ex husband would commit such a heinous crime. How very sad.

 

[JBean]

from the article:

>>The motive for the crime appears to be a dispute over religion.
Information developed revealed the suspect was upset with Shayona&#8217;s parents and sister for discontinuing the relationship due to different religious backgrounds, Hindu and Muslim,&#8221; the papers said.<<

 

[Mygirlsadie]

Wow...over religion. How nice. I figured it had nothing to do with mail fraud.

 

[mom3dd]

This is so very scary; I wondered when one post said the surviving daughter was un police protection. This is exactly my fear having 3dd the goodly precent of young men out there are disresectful of family opinion and values. They have no respect for parents, there was a father in Memphis I think 2 weeks ago murdered because he didn't want this punk seeing his daughter. WTH. Just mho.

 

[PrayersForMaura]

Wow...over religion. How nice. I figured it had nothing to do with mail fraud.

I always said, all of the wars of the world are over religion and territory.
Very sad.

 

[Shadow205]

Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez described Murtaza as a “person of interest” in the case.

“This is still a very wide and complex investigation,” Martinez said. “We are not discounting anything.”

Martinez noted that “based on the brutality of the crime, we believe there was more than one suspect involved.”

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1712023.php

 

[Dena]

Is it possible the surviving sister is involved?
This is such a sad crime. I hope the mother and sister are able to cope.

 

[JBean]

Is it possible the surviving sister is involved?
This is such a sad crime. I hope the mother and sister are able to cope.

I sure hope not. I am not getting that impression from our local news. They talk alot about what devastation the daughter and the mother have been through. In an interview this morning the DA or LE said he hadn't beeen able to really talk to the mother, because her injuries are so serious.
This poor family.

 

[JBean]

Family defends man held in double murder

Former boyfriend of surviving daughter arrested in Phoenix airport carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh.

The family of a Van Nuys man who has been arrested at a Phoenix airport in connection with the deaths of an Anaheim Hills father and daughter, the beating of a mother and a house fire last week say they are "very sad" about what is happening.
Iftekhar Murtaza, 22, was carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh, Maricopa County Superior Court officials confirmed Tuesday. He will have an extradition hearing at 8 a.m. Thursday at Maricopa County Superior Court, officials said
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1712023.php

 

[Anuniaq]

Iftekhar Murtaza's 64-year-old father declined to comment this morning as he helped customers at his XXXXXXX store in a shopping center at the corner of XXXXXXX and XXXXXX boulevards. (edited to remove name and location)

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1712023.php

I thought it was unfortunate that the paper chose to give the full name and location of the POI's family's store. He is still presumed innocent and even if he did it there is currently no information that any other family member was involved. Just seems like it makes it too easy for some crazy to go and do something stupid at their store.

This is such a senseless crime... why can't people just divorce or break-up without murder anymore?

 

[JBean]

This is an interesting read about the suspect in this case.

Friday, June 1, 2007
Love story and tragedy

Acquaintances of Murtaza, Dhanak describe affair reminiscent of 'Romeo and Juliet.'


Iftekhar Murtaza fancied himself a bit of the rebel, a gym rat with red and black tribal tattoos on buff shoulders.
In photos posted online, he struck a "gangsta" pose – muscles rippling outside a sleeveless T-shirt.
But those who know him considered Murtaza more of a "wangsta," a harmless wannabe gangster who used punctuation marks to make smiley faces online
Now some are not sure what to believe.
Murtaza – who had never been to court as an adult for anything more serious than a speeding ticket – appeared before an Arizona judge Thursday as a "person of interest" in the slaying of his on-again-off-again girlfriend's father and sister in Orange County

snip

The homicide victims – Jayprakesh and Karishma Dhanak – were beaten with baseball bats, stabbed and set ablaze on a hiking trail in Irvine, two minutes from the UCI dorm where Murtaza's ex-girlfriend, Shayona, lived, police and court records say.
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1715231.php

 

[txsvicki]

Suspect identified in deaths of Anaheim Hills father, daughter

Former boyfriend of surviving daughter arrested in Phoenix airport carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh

HE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERA Van Nuys man carrying a one-way ticket to Bangladesh has been arrested at a Phoenix airport in connection with the deaths of two Anaheim residents last week, the attempted murder of another and a arson, Maricopa County Superior Court officials confirmed Tuesday.
snip
Murtaza was connected with the crime through telephone toll records that revealed that his telephone was used on the day of the murders less than two miles from the crime scene and about 50 minutes before the attack began, documents say.


http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1712023.php

This is what I thought happened since women are burned with fire or acid in India due to being spurned by the girl or her family.

 

[mom3dd]

Court documents ascribe a motive to the brutal crime: a dispute over religion that led to the breakup of Murtaza and the Dhanak family's surviving daughter, Shayonya, 18.

Murtaza shared the highs and lows of his love life in dozens of emails to Richa Singh, a Tucson woman that he met about five years ago in Los Angeles.

He wrote that he adored Shayona Dhanak, but felt that her family was against him, trying to break the couple apart, Singh said in an interview Thursday.

snip "He felt kind of hopeless with the whole situation," said Singh, 23. "He told me he wanted to talk to the family and reassure them."

Religion was part of the problem. Murtaza was Muslim, Dhanak Hindu. But Singh said Shayona's parents were also concerned that he was not college-educated.

Despite the differences, Singh said, she has a hard time believing that Murtaza is a killer. She described him as a gym rat, physically buffed, but harmless. Despite cultural taboos, he was extensively tattooed on both arms, but Singh considered him more of a "wangster" – a wannabe gangster – than the real thing.

"None of us took him very seriously. I'm just in shock," she said.
http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/news/local/anaheimhills/article_1714788.php