Coroner’s Office suspect no foul play in Indian-origin Purdue University student's death: Report

Washington: The forensic pathologist found no trauma on the body of Neel Acharya, the Indian-origin student found dead near the Purdue University Airport in the US, and no foul play is suspected in the case, according to the Coroner’s Office.

Acharya's body was found on Sunday after police were called to investigate an unmoving body near the airport.

After Monday's autopsy, Acharya's death remains a bit of a mystery, The Lafayette Journal & Courier newspaper reported.

The forensic pathologist found no trauma on Acharya's body, Tippecanoe County Coroner Carrie Costello said, adding that foul play is not suspected in the death. His preliminary cause of death and manner of death are pending toxicology results, which can take up to six weeks to get back from the lab.

Costello met around 1 pm Tuesday with Acharya's parents, who flew in from India.

Acharya, 19, was a US citizen, Costello said.

The news of Acharya's death was released Monday evening to the public by the Computer Science Department at Purdue University before his family met with the coroner's office to positively identify his body.

“It is with great sadness that I inform you that one of our students Neel Acharya has passed away. The leadership in the Department of Computer Science expresses our profound sorrow for his passing. I am deeply saddened by his loss. My condolences go out to his friends family and all affected,” Chris Clifton, interim head of the university’s Computer Science Department, said in an email to the department on Monday.

According to the newspaper, it sent an email to Tim Doty, Purdue's senior director of media and public relations, asking for comment about why the computer science department released this information before the parents were notified by the coroner's office. Doty indicated he did not have a response.

Acharya was a junior double majoring in computer science and data science. He was a student of the John Martinson Honours College and worked as an undergraduate research assistant at Purdue University.

On Sunday, Acharya’s friends and family filed missing person reports with the Purdue University Police Department after his family lost contact with him Sunday morning around 12:30 am, according to a family member’s post on X, which has since been deleted.

This social media post panicked students about Acharya's well-being, and his Purdue friends started forming a search party to look for him, but by then, police had already discovered Acharya's body.

The Consulate General of India in Chicago responded to the family's post on X saying, "Consulate is in touch with Purdue University authorities and also with Neel's family. The consulate will extend all possible support and help." His parent’s post noted that he was last seen being dropped off by an Uber driver at Purdue University and was last seen at the First Street Tower student dormitory.

Acharya’s body was found approximately a mile away from the First Street Tower student dormitory and half a mile away from the Purdue University Airport.

When the news broke of Acharya's death late Monday night, many began questioning why the Tippecanoe County Coroner's Office had not released a reason for his death.

The coroner's office was waiting for the family to arrive in the United States, so they could positively identify Acharya's body before publishing a statement, including the autopsy results. The coroner's office was not able to notify the family of Acharya's death before they left India to travel to the US.

When asked about vigils and emotional support for Acharya's friends, Doty said, "Often, they (vigils) are organised by friends or the college that the student belongs to. In times of tragedy, support is always offered to those affected and the campus community in general."