Indian-origin student Varun Chheda killed at Purdue University; roommate arrested on murder charges

An Indian-origin student was killed at Purdue University, following which his roommate was arrested on murder charges. 22-year-old Korean student Ji Min “Jimmy” Sha, roommate of the 20-year-old Indian-origin Varun Manish Chheda, was arrested by the police on charges of Chheda's murder. Sha is a 22-year-old junior cybersecurity major and international student from Korea. He called 911 around 12:45 am on Wednesday to inform the police about Chheda’s death, Purdue University Police chief Lesley Weite said at a news conference.

Chheda was killed in his dormitory in the McCutcheon Hall on the western edge of the university campus in West Lafayette. Chheda, who was from Indianapolis and studying data science at the university, succumbed to “multiple sharp force traumatic injuries,” and the death was ruled a homicide, as per initial autopsy reports.

According to PTI, Chedda’s childhood friend Arunabh Sinha said the 20-year-old was gaming and chatting online with friends on Tuesday when they heard screams on call. While Sinha did not join his friends that night, they told him that they heard something suspicious and did not know what happened.

Commenting on Chheda’s death, University President Mitch Daniels said it was “as tragic an event as we can imagine happening on our campus.” He further said “our hearts and thoughts go out to all of those affected by this terrible event.”

Weite said that Sha was taken into custody soon after the 911 call and taken to police station. He hasn’t been formally charged in the case as of now. Weite believes the attack was “unprovoked” and “senseless".

(With agency inputs)