Korean student who stabbed Indian-origin roommate in US university, charged with murder

WASHINGTON: A Korean student, who allegedly stabbed his Indian-origin roommate to death in their dormitory at the prestigious Purdue University has been charged with murder, according to US media reports.

Ji Min Sha, a 22-year-old cybersecurity major from Seoul ruthlessly attacked Varun Manish Chheda on October 5 by stabbing him multiple times in the head and neck before he called authorities to report his 20-year-old roommate was dead, prosecutors argued, according to the Journal & Courier on Thursday.

Sha was formally charged with murder on Thursday in the killing of Chheda, in what police called an unprovoked attack. Prosecutors allege that Sha “did knowingly or intentionally kill” Chheda, ABC News reported.

Chheda from Indianapolis, was found dead in McCutcheon Hall on the western edge of the campus last Wednesday.

Purdue Police Chief Lesley Wiete said last week that Sha called police early on October 5 and told them his roommate was dead in their first-floor dorm room on the campus in West Lafayette, which is about 104 kilometers northwest of Indianapolis.

Officers who arrested Sha found him wearing clothes with blood on them, prosecutors said, and an autopsy found that Chheda had died of multiple sharp-force traumatic injuries.

If convicted of the one count of murder, Sha could face anywhere between 45 to 60 years in prison.

The cybersecurity major is being held without bail, the Post reported.

On Thursday, Sha claimed he was blackmailed by Chheda, when he was asked about the motive of his crime, adding that he was very sorry for having killed his friend.

He also apologised to Chheda’s family, the Journal & Courier reported.

Last week, Sha appeared to mutter I love my family as he was hauled to jail.

Police found Chheda in a chair and Sha covered in what appeared to be blood, according to WLFI, a television station in Indiana.

They also observed what they believed to be blood spattered on the wall, along with a pool of blood and a folding knife on the floor.

Sha allegedly admitted that the knife was his and that he had used it to kill his roommate.

Chheda’s friends have said they had been gaming with the victim when they suddenly heard him screaming. Indiana police described the crime as an unprovoked and senseless murder. (PTI)