Naresh Bhatt, husband of missing woman, ordered to remain in jail in Northern Virginia

A judge in Northern Virginia on Monday ordered the husband charged in the disappearance of his wife to remain behind bars as the case proceeds.

The Prince William Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court judge denied bond for Naresh Bhatt after determining that he is a likely flight risk and a potential danger to the community.

Police charged Mr. Bhatt on Thursday with concealing a body following a search of the Manassas Park home he shared with his wife, Mamta Kafle Bhatt, 28, and their 1-year-old daughter. Mrs. Bhatt, a nurse, went missing on July 31.

Prosecutors said investigators found bloodstains in the primary bedroom and bathroom.

Court documents allege that Mr. Bhatt killed his wife and dragged her body out of their home.

Mr. Bhatt has not been charged with murder, and authorities have not recovered Mrs. Bhatt’s body. But prosecutors are working to build that case against him.

During an arraignment hearing on Friday, Prince William County Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Sarah Sami said Mr. Bhatt bought a pack of knives the day before his wife vanished. Two of the knives could not be located by investigators.

Ms. Sami added that Mr. Bhatt bought various cleaning supplies on the day the young mother went missing.

Detectives found what appeared to be blood splatter in the house when scanning it with forensic technology, but Ms. Sami acknowledged that the suspected blood had not been tested for Mrs. Bhatt’s DNA.

Prosecutors also tried to portray Mr. Bhatt as a man looking to skip town. Investigators saw a packed suitcase and noticed the husband’s and daughter’s passports in his bedroom during the home search.

The commonwealth’s attorneys said Mr. Bhatt sold his Tesla on Aug. 19 — three days before the home search — and two witnesses told police that he had approached them about buying his house.

Mrs. Bhatt’s coworkers first called the police for a welfare check on Aug. 1 when she missed her shift at UVA Health Prince William Medical Center.

Mr. Bhatt originally told authorities his wife wasn’t missing because she went to visit relatives in New York or Texas. The young mother, who is from Nepal, has no family in the U.S.

Mr. Bhatt formally reported his wife as missing on Aug. 5.

Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo said Mr. Bhatt became uncooperative with the investigation as it stretched into its fourth week. His resistance prompted police to get a search warrant for the couple’s home.

A day after police gained access to the house, Mr. Bhatt was led out in handcuffs.

Mr. Bhatt is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing on Oct. 24.