London / New Delhi — Police in the United Kingdom are intensifying their international search for Pankaj Lamba, a man charged with the murder of his 24-year-old wife, Harshita Brella, who was found strangled and hidden in the boot of a car in Ilford, East London, on November 14, 2024.
Investigators believe Brella was killed several days earlier, on November 10, in Corby, Northamptonshire, before her body was moved and concealed. Lamba, originally from Delhi, fled the UK shortly after the murder and remains at large.
According to reports from the BBC and ITV News, detectives from Northamptonshire Police travelled to India in July 2025 to meet with Brella’s family and return her personal belongings. During the visit, police also pursued new leads suggesting that Lamba had been running a snack and vegetable shop near Delhi, close to his childhood home.
Witnesses told ITV that Lamba was often seen wearing a face covering and accompanied by a woman and young child. His former teacher, Sunil Saini, said he last saw Lamba in April, shortly before the store abruptly closed. “He contacted me in February or March,” Saini recalled. “Before leaving, he told me he had some restaurant items I could use or sell. This conversation took place around the 10th or 11th of April this year.”
Since then, the store has reportedly been converted into an egg shop, and locals believe Lamba vanished from the area after learning that police were closing in.
In March 2025, Lamba was charged in absentia with murder, rape, sexual assault, and coercive behaviour. The charges followed months of investigation into allegations that Brella had suffered repeated domestic abuse during their marriage. Both originally from Delhi, the couple had moved to the UK earlier in 2024 in search of work.
Weeks before her death, Harshita Brella filed a domestic abuse complaint against her husband, leading to his arrest. However, UK police released Lamba on bail, with restrictions that expired a month before her murder. Brella’s family believes this lapse gave him the opportunity to plan his escape.
“That’s when Pankaj realized the police were not serious about the case,” said Harshita’s sister, Sonia Dabas. “He thought he could get away with murder.”
Brella’s mother, Sudesh Kumari, has accused both the UK and Indian governments of failing to act swiftly. “Why has her killer not been caught yet?” she said in an interview with the BBC. “Neither government is doing anything. I want justice for my daughter — only then will I find peace.”
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in the UK has launched an investigation into four Northamptonshire Police officers over their handling of Brella’s earlier abuse report. The IOPC confirmed that its findings have been submitted to the force, which has until mid-November to respond.
Authorities in both countries continue to coordinate efforts to locate and extradite Lamba, who remains one of the UK’s most wanted fugitives.