MUMBAI: A day after a Kurla resident was arrested for allegedly strangling his mother, the police said that he had remained at home with the corpse for almost 36 hours before chopping the body into three and dumping the parts at different spots. The accused, Sohail Shaikh, had been caught on Wednesday.

The headless body of the woman, now identified as Khairunissa Shaikh, was found near Naval Gate in Vidyavihar on December 30. The portion below the knees was also missing.

After strangling his mother, Sohail clobbered her twice with a hammer to ensure that she died, said an officer from Ghatkopar police station. This had led to a huge loss of blood. "He [Sohail] says that he dragged the body into the bathroom as blood was oozing out... In the washroom, he kept pouring water until the flow of blood ebbed," said the officer.

While the body was at home, Sohail kept the air-conditioner on. "He did this as it would help dissipate the stench and the body would take a bit longer to decompose," said the officer.

On the night of December 28, Sohail had got home drunk. He and his mother got into a fight due to his drinking habit and his joblessness.

The police said that Sohail is married but had packed his wife off. The reason for the estrangement was not immediately known.

After hammering his mother on the head, he dozed off. The morning after, he started drinking while contemplating over how to dispose of the body, said the police. He then pulled out two gold bangles from his mother's body, sold them to a jeweller in Ghatkopar for Rs 50,000. "Of this, he gave Rs 25,000 to his girlfriend who works at a beer bar. He used Rs 20,000 to get his mortgaged two-wheeler released," said the officer. He used the vehicle to cart away the three bundles in which he had stuffed his mother's body parts.

Deputy commissioner of police Akhilesh Singh said that Sohail had initially tried to mislead investigators. "But after being cross-questioned, he confessed to his crime," said Singh.

Investigating officer Deep Bane said that they are in the process of recovering the weapons used in the crime.