Memorial held for Purdue University student killed in residence hall

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Purdue University student accused of killing roommate is taken to jail

Ji Min Sha, 22, was identified as the suspect by Purdue Police Chief Lesley Wiete during a press conference in the killing of Varun Manish Chheda.

A memorial was held Wednesday night for slain Purdue University student Varun Manish Chheda. 

Fox 59 reported that hundreds attended a candlelight vigil in the 20-year-old's honor near the Unfinished Block P statue on campus. 

Pictures posted to social media showed cards and flowers at the base of the statue, which The Purdue Arboretum notes is in honor of students who have died while attending the university as well as symbolizes that all students, alumni, community members and friends of Purdue University are a work in progress and will never completely be finished growing and learning. 

The Indianapolis native was killed in an incident inside his McCutcheon Hall dorm room. 

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General view of Purdue Boilermakers campus before the game against the Bowling Green Falcons at Ross-Ade Stadium on Sept. 26, 2015 in West Lafayette, Indiana.  ((Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images))

Ji Min Sha, the 22-year-old suspect accused of killing Chheda, was taken into custody and preliminarily charged with murder on Wednesday after university officials said he made a 911 call at 12:44 a.m. ET regarding the incident.

The Tippecanoe County coroner said Chheda was killed by "multiple sharp force traumatic injuries," and that the manner of death is homicide.

It was an act that Purdue Police Chief Lesley Wiete told reporters was "unprovoked and senseless."

Purdue University Police Chief Lesley Wiete addresses the media during a press conference following the murder of Purdue student Varun Manish Chheda, Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, at McCutcheon Hall in West Lafayette, Ind. (Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK)

When asked by reporters why he allegedly killed Chheda, Sha responded: "I love my family."

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Chheda, who was a graduate of Park Tudor School in Indianapolis and a senior in the College of Science, was widely remembered as intelligent, kind, loyal and passionate. 

Andrew Wu, an MIT student who attended Park Tudor and was a class ahead of Chheda, told Fox 59 that they stayed in touch by playing video games online together and that Chheda was "really just the best guy you ever wanted to hang out with."

Photo of McCutcheon Hall on Purdue University campus, on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, in West Lafayette, Ind. (Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK)

He said that Chheda never mentioned anything about Sha and that it is hard to imagine why anyone would want to do this to him.

Kevin Tian, who was a high school classmate at Park Tudor, shared Wu's sentiments, noting that people had traveled from Indiana University to see the memorial.

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"Everyone knew him as someone who had a lot of potential. Everyone respected him, so to see him go like this is just unfair," he told the outlet.

Fox News' Adam Sabes contributed to this report.