Egypt man arrested for killing wife, hiding body at home for three months

Dubai: Egyptian police have arrested a 40-year-old man accused of killing his wife and keeping her body hidden inside their home in Shubra El Kheima for nearly three months while telling their young daughter that her mother was ill and needed to sleep.

Investigators said the incident began with a heated argument between the couple at their home, during which the husband allegedly struck his wife with a metal hammer, killing her.

He then allegedly wrapped her body in blankets and left it in a corner of the apartment, using perfumes and air fresheners daily in an attempt to mask the smell of decomposition, according to the investigation.

During the three months, the father allegedly told his daughter that her mother was seriously ill and needed rest, warning the child not to approach her. The girl continued waiting for her mother to wake up, unaware that she had died.

The case came to light after the smell eventually spread beyond the apartment despite attempts to conceal it, prompting suspicious neighbours to alert police.

Security officers who arrived at the property found the woman's body, identified as Afaf, wrapped in blankets and in an advanced state of decomposition.

Investigators said statements from the child, together with other evidence, helped establish the sequence of events from the couple's argument to the alleged concealment of the body.

Police arrested the husband, who admitted to the killing and led officers to the metal hammer allegedly used in the attack.

The woman's body was transferred to the Zeinhom morgue while prosecutors continued legal proceedings.