In a tragic incident marking the fourth case this year and the third within a week, 19-year-old Indian-origin student Shreyas Reddy Beniger was discovered dead in the United States on Thursday. Shreyas, a student at the Linder School of Business in Ohio, held an American passport, while his parents resided in Hyderabad, India.
Authorities, including officials from the Linder School of Business, have confirmed that there is no suspicion of foul play or the involvement of a hate crime in Shreyas’s untimely death.
Expressing deep sorrow, the Indian Mission in New York informed that an investigation is underway to determine the cause of Beniger’s demise. The Consulate emphasized that, at this stage, foul play is not suspected and pledged ongoing support to Shreyas’s family.
This tragic incident follows two other recent cases involving Indian students in the United States. Neel Acharya, a student at Purdue University, was reported missing by his mother and later found dead on the university campus. Similarly, Vivek Saini, an MBA student in Georgia’s Lithonia, was brutally attacked and killed by a homeless man after a dispute over free food.
The news also recalls the unfortunate incident of Akul Dhawan, found dead outside the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in January, with suspicions raised by his family regarding the university’s police department’s alleged negligence.
These incidents shed light on the challenges faced by Indian students studying in the United States, with factors such as mental stress, loneliness, and exposure to substance abuse potentially contributing to the severity of some cases. With over 300,000 Indian students in the US, experts highlight the importance of addressing mental health concerns and providing support to international students, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.