Australian man admits to murdering Indian student

Melbourne, Oct 24: A 21-year-old

man has pleaded guilty to the

of a young Indian woman whose dismembered body was discovered in a suitcase in a

canal last year.

The body of Tosha Thakkar, 24, was found in the suitcase floating in a canal near the Parramatta River at Meadowbank in Mar 2011.

Police say she had been raped and then strangled, a crime which drew a shocked and furious response from the Indian community both in Sydney and overseas.

Burwood Local Court said that Daniel Stani-Reginald, who was Thakkar's neighbour, pleaded guilty to the murder. He was also charged of raping Thakkar.

According to 'The Age' report, Stani-Reginald has not pleaded guilty to this charge. The two were living in the same apartment building and Stani-Reginald was arrested soon after Thakkar's body was found.

Magistrate Christopher Longley committed Stani-Reginald for sentencing in the NSW Supreme Court on Nov 28. Stani-Reginald and Thakkar lived in separate apartments above an empty storefront on Edwin Street in Croydon in Sydney's inner west, the report said adding it was believed the murder took place in Thakkar's apartment.

Her body was found in a suitcase by construction workers a few days later while working on an oil line.

PTI