Daijiworld Media Network - Edmonton
Edmonton, Jul 25: A 23-year-old Indian student from Punjab was allegedly strangled to death at her residence in Edmonton, Canada, with police arresting her live-in partner, also an Indian national, in connection with the murder.
The victim, Damanpreet Kaur, was a native of Samrala in Ludhiana district and had moved to Canada nearly five years ago on a student visa.
According to the Edmonton Police Service (EPS), officers responded to a residence in the Silverberry neighbourhood of southeast Edmonton on Jul. 9 after receiving reports of an unresponsive woman with suspicious injuries.
Emergency responders shifted Kaur to a hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries on July 12.
An autopsy conducted on July 14 confirmed that she died due to strangulation, following which the medical examiner ruled the case a homicide, the EPS said.
Police arrested Ritish Kumar (22) on July 22 and charged him with second-degree murder.
Investigators said the incident is being treated as an intimate partner homicide and confirmed that no other suspects are being sought in the case.
According to Kaur's family, her parents had taken a loan to fund her education and help her settle in Canada.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe campaign launched to repatriate Kaur's body to India has raised more than $18,000, nearing its $20,000 target.