2 Indian students dead in US hit-and-run

Dec 3, 2019
Washington: Two Indian students were killed in a hit-and-run incident in the US state of Tennessee, with the accused surrendering himself to the police, media reports said.

The accident took place on Thanksgiving Day on November 28 and the victims were identified as Vybhav Gospisetty, 26, and Judy Stanley Pinheiro, 23, who were both Indian graduate students at the Tennessee State University, the Knoxville-based WVLT-TV said in a report.

The accused David Torres’ GMC truck reportedly collided with the 2015 Nissan Sentra, which Gospisetty was driving with Pinheiro sitting in the front seat.

The Sentra reportedly attempted to cross Nolensville Pile from the parking lot of the US Bank to Walmart. Police said the truck hit the passenger side of the car as it was driving north.

The car was sent off the east side of the road, through a fence and into a tree on Walmart property, according to the WVLT-TV report.

Witnesses told police that the GMC was speeding and ran the red light at the intersection.

Torres surrendered on December 1 to the Metro Nashville Police.

The university also released a statement, saying: “The Tennessee State University family is mourning the loss of two students killed in an auto accident on Thanksgiving night. Judy Stanley, 23, and Vybhav Gopisetty, 26, were both graduate students from India pursuing food science degrees in the College of Agriculture. Stanley was seeking a master’s, and Gopisetty a doctorate.” IANS