Two killed in an on-campus apartment late Thursday evening
By KIMBERLY VETTER & JORDAN BLUM
Advocate staff writers
Published: Dec 14, 2007 - UPDATED: 4:25 p.m.
Two LSU doctoral students from India were shot to death Thursday night in a university apartment building, LSU Chancellor Sean O’Keefe said at a news conference today.
The victims, Chandrasekhar Reddy Komma and Kiran Kumar Allam, were slain at the Edward Gay Apartments, near West Roosevelt Street, O’Keefe said. Both men were shot in the head, and one was bound, O’Keefe said.
While a joint team of LSU and Baton Rouge police officers are still investigating the motive for the killings, O’Keefe said the men “appeared to be targeted for reasons unknown.â€
“This does not appear to be a random event,†O’Keefe said.
No arrests have been made.
Asked about a reported 2006 incident in which a chemistry student threatened one of the victims, LSU Police Maj. Lawrence Rabalais said that is one thing investigators are looking into. Rabalais said he wasn’t sure which of the victims was involved.
A memorial service for the two is set for 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. tonight in the LSU Student Union Ballroom. The public is invited to attend the service, which is sponsored by the LSU Indian Student Association.
Terry Bricker, professor of basic sciences, had Komma working in his laboratory about two years ago when he was still a new doctoral student.
“He was a really nice, really easy to get along with,†Bricker said. “He was quiet, but very, very interesting in learning about science. He got along well with his colleagues.â€
Bricker said Komma eventually transferred to the laboratory of Professor Wayne Zhou, who declined comment, saying he was told not to do so.
Bricker said Komma recently passed his general exam to become a doctoral "candidate," which put him on the right track toward completing his degree.
“That was a milestone for him,†Bricker said, “which kind of makes this even more difficult to take.â€
The men were killed Thursday in Allam’s campus apartment, O’Keefe said. The other victim, Komma, lived in an apartment off Burbank Drive, he said.
The crime was first reported to LSU Police as a medical emergency call about 10:37 p.m. Thursday.
After learning what happened, university officials sent out an emergency text message to the 8,000 LSU students, faculty and workers who had registered their cell phones with the university’s emergency text-message system, O’Keefe said.
But some of those people did not receive the message, he said. The company that runs the service is trying to find out what the problem was, he said.
University officials also sent out a broadcast e-mail to people at LSU and posted a message to the LSU Web site.
O’Keefe said serious consideration was given to putting the entire campus on lockdown after the shootings. But that was not done because “there was nothing to suggest there was a pattern here,†he said.
LSU doctoral student Sachin Chintawar of India, who lives in the Edward Gay Apartments, said he was “totally shocked†and feels unsafe on campus.
“Everybody is talking about moving,†said Chintawar, who was a nearby neighbor and acquaintance of Allam.
“There is not safety at all here,†said Chintawar, who first moved away from Tiger Manor because of safety concerns. “Off campus there is no safety. On campus there is no safety.â€
Chintawar said dealing with crime is more difficult for international students because they are in foreign territory and far from home.
“It's making news at home (in India),†he said about the murders. “People are asking, ‘Is it worth your life to study here?’â€
The incident almost certainly will scare some potential international students away from LSU, he said. Chintawar said he believes criminals sometimes target international students because they are seen as easy targets.
“They think we are safe bets for them,†Chintawar said, noting that his roommate was mugged and had his wallet stolen early in the fall. “They think we don't do anything but study, and we won't resist or anything.â€
Gerard Braud, a crisis communications specialist who runs Mandeville-based Braud Communications, said LSU failed to properly practice its emergency communications systems, particularly the university's new mobile phone text messaging alert system, which partially failed when notifications were sent out to students, faculty and staff.
Braud said his daughter is an LSU student who is supposed to receive the text alerts but did not.
“She's pretty upset because she and her whole sorority house didn't get any notification,†Braud said. “My daughter was freaking out this morning because she didn't know what to do.â€
Braud noted that less than a third of the campus is even registered to receive the text alerts. Students must be given more incentives from LSU to sign up, he said, even if it means giving them $5 gift cards.
Students were first notified via e-mail of the shootings more than 90 minutes after police responded. Braud argued that warnings to students should have been sent out within the hour.
LSU students are in final exams, which end tomorrow. No tests have been canceled because of the incident.
LSU is offering counseling to students. They can visit the Student Health Center, which is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or call 225-578-8774 to speak to a counselor over the phone.
