Suspect in Purdue dorm slaying claims he was ‘blackmailed’
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WISH) — The man accused of killing his roommate in a Purdue University dorm room made his first court appearance on Friday afternoon.
Ji Min Sha, 22, made statements to reporters while outside of the courtroom at the Tippecanoe County Courthouse. Cameras are not allowed inside of the courtroom in Indiana.
“I was blackmailed,” Sha said.
Sha did not elaborate further on his statement, and court documents reviewed by News 8 do not provide more insight regarding his claim.
Sha also apologized to the family of the victim.
“I’m sorry,” Sha said.
Sha has not yet been formally charged and is being kept in the Tippecanoe County Jail on a 72-hour hold. He is being held without bond.
Investigators say Sha was the one who alerted police about the crime by dialing 911 and admitting to killing his roommate with a knife.
According to court documents, officers with the Purdue University Police Department arrived to McCutcheon Hall around 12:45 a.m. Wednesday to find 20-year-old Varun Chheda stabbed to death in a chair. Investigators say Sha had blood on his body and clothes. More blood was on the wall and floor.
A folding knife was found on the floor of the dorm, and, police say, Sha admitted it belonged to him.
“Sha said the knife found on the floor was his, and admitted he used the knife to kill Chheda while he was sitting in the chair where police found him,” court documents state.
Chheda’s autopsy revealed he had been stabbed multiple times in the head and neck.
Sha returns to court on Oct. 13.
A visitation will be Sunday for Varun Chheda, who died in a homicide Wednesday on the Purdue University campus. The visitation will be from 2-5 p.m. Sunday at Leppert Mortuary-Nora in Indianapolis, 740 E. 86th St.
