Two Indian PhD Students Found Dead at Louisiana State University- Shot in the Head

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dec. 14, 2007
Satinder Sharma

Two Ph.D students Chandrasekhar Reddy Komma, 31 and Kiran Kumar Allam, 33, found dead at Edward Gay apartment complex at Louisiana State University. They were discovered after a call to campus police around 10:30 p.m. Thursday night seeking medical attention.

The LSU campus was not locked down after the murders and campus officials are urging students to be cautious traveling to and from campus. The university does not have gates at its many entrances and the campus cannot be blocked because two major city roads run through the campus

Sean O’Keefe, LSU Chancellor said, both students were each shot in the head with a single bullet; appears for now to be a targeted home invasion. Kiran Allam’s body was found near the door and Komma was found bound by a computer cable.

The campus police responded to a 911 call at 10:37 p.m. and encountered “a very, very tragic scene. The Baton Rouge Police Department and LSU campus police is investigating. There was no sign of force entry into the apartment. The murder came to light when Allam’s pregnant wife sought urgent medical help from the university authorities.

According to media report, three men were seen leaving the area but no arrest has so far been made. O'Keefe said the university took many precautions to notify students about the shootings but felt a shutdown of campus was unnecessary. Louisiana State University have 28,000-student at campus

Both students were from Andhra Pradesh, India. Chandrasekhar Reddy Komma was from Kadapa district and Kiran Kumar Allam from Karimn Nagar district. Komma got married nine months ago and Allam was son of Telugu author Allam Rajaiah