CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — A search warrant of 60-year-old Manisha Nath’s Woodlake home obtained by CBS 6 sheds more light on the death of her son, 28-year-old Somak Nath.
A Chesterfield detective wrote that on October 22, a neighbor stated she called 911 after seeing Somak unconscious in the driveway and said that his mother also called first responders.
The warrant alleged that the neighbor did not feel a pulse and began performing chest compressions on the victim.
The documents stated Manisha told responding officers that Somak had several fainting spells that day.
“She told officers that she was told by Somak's father to take him to the hospital. As she was trying to get him in the car to go to the hospital, Somak collapsed and became unresponsive,” the documents said.
Police said Somak’s father lives in Maryland.
Somak Nath was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The search warrant of the Woods Walk Lane home, performed about 24 hours after Somak died, revealed detectives seized a blue Samsung phone, personal documents and bedding.
The Chesterfield detective wrote that confiscating the phone was necessary to validate Manisha Nath’s claim about calling 911.
She is now in custody at Riverside Regional Jail and charged with felony abuse and neglect of a vulnerable adult resulting in death.
Police said it was the medical examiner who alerted officers that they believed the death was criminal.
The neighbor told responding officers that she had only seen Somak outside twice over the last year and he appeared thin and pale.
Tuesday morning, the medical examiner told CBS 6 the victim’s cause and manner of death is still pending.
28-year-old Chesterfield man weighed 65 pounds when he died, police say
A criminal complaint said the 28-year-old victim was nonverbal autistic and could not care for himself. The detective wrote that Somak was found in the driveway following the 911 call.
“Somak was reported to be only 65 lbs indicating possible [mal]nourishment, missing most of his top teeth, and his bottom teeth were rotted,” the detective wrote. “Somak also had grime over most of his body indicating he had not bathed in some time and sores on his back.”
The autopsy found “his organs were already starting to decompose," according to the search warrant.
A search warrant of the home found “little to no food in the kitchen, and an excessive amount of black mold in the residence. There was also a lack of running water and Manisha told police she would just give Somak a bucket of water and mug to bathe himself.”
There were no working toilets either, the complaint said.
Court documents showed Nath has spent 17 years in the community, was looking for work, and had earned her PhD in biochemistry.
Nath is due back in court for a status hearing November 18. CBS 6 has reached out to her defense attorney for comment.
If you have information about this incident, contact the Chesterfield County Police Department at 804-748-1251 or Crime Solvers at 804-748-0660 or through the P3 app.
This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.
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