Family in shock; cause of attack a mystery

The family members of Prabha Arun Kumar, a software engineer from the City who was stabbed to death in Sydney, Australia, are in a state of shock.

The cause of the attack remains a mystery, as does the identity of the assailants.
“We don’t know the motive behind the attack or the identity of the murderer.

Prabha’s husband Arun Kumar will formally receive communication from the local police on Monday,” Thrijesh, a relative of the victim, told Deccan Herald.

“It could be either an attempt to rob her that ended in the murder or yet another case of racial attack on an Indian. We don’t even know if the assailant fled with any of her valuables. The norms prevent the local police from sharing any information with external sources over the phone. The police would share the information only with the husband or the parents,” he added.

Prabha's post-mortem was conducted at a local hospital. The body will be handed over to Arun Kumar on Monday. It is likely to be flown back to the City on Wednesday.

The family members are yet to decide the place — Bengaluru or Mangaluru — for Prabha’s cremation.

Her brother, Dr Shankar Shetty, an Australian citizen staying in Perth, and Arun would complete the formalities and bring the body to Bengaluru, said family members.

Prabha obtained an engineering degree in computer science from KVJ Institute in Sullia, and moved to Bengaluru in 1998. She was sent to Australia for a project for a year by her employer Mindtree in 2012.

The duration was extended by two more years. Prabha was expected to return to the City in the first week of April.

She married Prashanthnagar-resident Arun Kumar, who runs a private firm, in 2000. The couple has a nine-year-old daughter studying in the City, said the relatives.
She was returning home after completing overtime duty at her office when the attack took place.

“We contacted her roommates and the Mindtree country head after receiving information. An ambulance was rushed there and she was shifted to hospital. We informed her brother, Dr Shetty, who rushed to Sydney,” said Thrijesh.

The family members in Bengaluru did not know the nature of the attack and the injuries. They were told Prabha was injured, but out of danger.

Shetty said the relatives in Bengaluru came to know around 9:30 pm that she was critical as her throat was slit repeatedly. Prabha passed away minutes later, he said.

Horror on phone
Prabha was speaking to her husband over the phone when she was attacked. Apparently, she pleaded with the attacker.

“A hefty man is chasing me. I think he is planning to attack me,” she said.

“Take all my valuables if you want. Whatever you want, you take, but don’t harm me.

Spare me, please,” she pleaded as her husband overheard her. “Her throat was slit multiple times,” said Prabha’s nephew Thrijesh.

“Chinnu (as she calls her husband), he stabbed me!” she told Arun before the line got disconnected.