A Sydney woman has been charged with murdering her husband and then dismembering and disposing of his body parts in bins – in a case described as “macabre and bizarre” by a detective.
Mamdouh Noufl, 62, from the city’s Greenacre suburb, was reported missing by family friends in July last year.
New South Wales (NSW) Police said he had not been seen since May 2023.
They launched an investigation into his disappearance and as time went on “some suspicious circumstances were revealed”.
On Saturday, the Australian police force said they had arrested and charged his 53-year-old wife, Nirmeen Noufl, on suspicion of his murder.
“Detectives will allege in court the woman killed her husband before cutting up his body to hide the remains,” NSW Police said in a statement.
“At the same time, detectives – with assistance from specialist officers – executed a crime scene warrant at a home on Juno Parade, Greenacre.”
Investigations continue, the force added.
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‘The murder is brutal… macabre and bizarre’
Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty, from NSW Police, told reporters: “The murder is brutal, and it’s also macabre and bizarre.
“We’ll allege also that she butchered and dismembered his body, placed his body parts in plastic bags and then disposed of his remains in various rubbish bins in residential areas and industrial areas of southwest Sydney.”
She allegedly dismembered her husband’s body with a knife and power saw, disposing of the body before carrying out an extensive clean-up of the house and replacing the floors, 7News reported, quoting the officer.
“His remains have never been located and I doubt they will ever be located,” Mr Doherty said.
The detective alleged the accused “benefitted greatly” from the demise of her husband and “accumulated a lot of unexplained wealth and has travelled to Egypt and sold properties”.
He added the couple’s eight children were still coming to terms with the loss of their father.
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Nirmeen Noufl was arrested at Banks House – an acute adult mental health inpatient unit at Bankstown Hospital, where she was a patient.
On Friday, she appeared before Bankstown Local Court where she was refused bail, and will next appear at Burford Local Court in December.
