A 21-year-old international student was found shot to death in her Houston home on Monday. A suspect has been captured in surveillance images as he was leaving the crime scene on Saturday. The victim was identified as Muna Pandey, the only child of a family from Nepal.
She was studying nursing abroad in Texas, attending Houston Community College, and working at a nearby phone store. Pandey is the second college student to be found murdered in Houston this week. Andrea Rodriguez Avila, a junior at Rice University, was found dead in her dorm room with her boyfriend just an hour earlier. Police said Avila was the victim of a murder-suicide.
Mysterious Death
Police released photos of the suspect believed to have killed Pandey and requested the public for help in identifying him. "Homicide detectives are searching for this male in the fatal shooting of a woman at 6363 West Airport Blvd. on Monday," the Houston Police Department said in a statement Wednesday.
"We demand justice for Muna Pandey, my dear friend and former roommate, who was tragically taken from us," Muna's former roommate Orusha Niraula wrote in a post to Facebook.
"She was shot in her own home in Houston... the pain of losing her in such a violent way is unbearable."
Cops said that they arrived at the Pandey's rented apartment on West Airport Boulevard at around 5:35 p.m., after receiving an anonymous tip about a body in the unit.
The caller's identity was not revealed.
According to family sources, Pandey was reportedly in a relationship with a white American man and had expressed concerns about the stability of their relationship.
She shared her concerns with her mother, Anita, as reported by a New York-based nonprofit that focuses on stories about Nepalis.
Mother Was Worried About Daughter's Safety
Anita also said that Muna's mobile phone had been unreachable for three days before she was found. The surveillance image released by Houston PD was captured at around 9:48 p.m. on Saturday.
"HPD patrol officers responded to a "person down" call and found the victim with multiple gunshot wounds inside an apartment," cops said on Wednesday in an accompanying press release.
"Paramedics pronounced her deceased at the scene.
"The apartment complex staff told officers that prior to calling 911, they received an anonymous call about a body inside the apartment. At this time, there is no known motive."
They added that her body, which was found with multiple gunshot wounds, has been sent for an autopsy, while authorities are currently searching for the person suspected to be responsible.
Police said that no weapon was found at the murder scene, and they have not yet identified a suspect.
As of Wednesday evening, the man captured in the footage remains unidentified and on the run. He is being treated as a suspect, though his name and location are still unknown.
At 4:30 p.m. on Monday, 21-year-old Andrea Rodriguez Avila, a junior at Rice University, was found shot to death in her dorm room alongside a man believed to be her boyfriend.
He was found dead with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and a note was reportedly found at the scene.
