Purdue University Student Killed in Dorm: Roommate in Custody

Varun Manish Chheda, a 20-year-old, senior from Indianapolis studying data science was killed by his roommate overnight in a residence hall on the campus in West Lafayette, Indiana on Wednesday, October 5, 2022.

Ji Min “Jimmy” Sha, a junior cybersecurity major and international student from Korea, called 911 around 12:45 a.m. Wednesday to report the death according to Purdue University Police Chief Lesley Wiete.

The call’s specifics were not revealed. According to authorities, the incident occurred in a room on the first floor of McCutcheon Hall.

Sha was booked into the Tippecanoe County Jail on a murder charge on Wednesday afternoon, according to jail records. According to the records, no bond was set.

According to preliminary autopsy results, Chheda died of “multiple sharp force traumatic injuries,” and the manner of death was a homicide. The final autopsy findings are pending toxicology, the coroner’s office said.

It’s unclear whether Sha has hired an attorney to represent him. This is the school’s second homicide in less than a decade.