An 18-year-old student from Hyderabad, who was missing for over two months, was found dead in Finland. With the body now recovered, the student's family has called for a probe, calling his death "suspicious."
The student, who has been identified as Manideep Reddy, was last seen on May 5 at a mall in Helsinki, reported news agency PTI. Citing the family's lawyer, PTI added that Reddy's body was recovered from the sea on Saturday.
Reddy was pursuing a Bachelor's Programme in Software and Systems Engineering at Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology (LUT University), Lahti Campus, Finland.
Last seen in May
As per the student's father, Reddy was last seen on May 5. Speaking to HT, the father, G Muthyam Reddy, also stated that the last conversation he had with his son was on May 5.
“He asked for some money, which my wife, Mamata, had sent to him online. After that, he did not contact us. All our attempts to reach him since then have failed,” he said.
As the search for Reddy was launched, his family also took to the matter to court, where the Telangana High Court called on the central and state governments to trace the whereabouts of the student.
{{/usCountry}}As the search for Reddy was launched, his family also took to the matter to court, where the Telangana High Court called on the central and state governments to trace the whereabouts of the student.
{{/usCountry}}The father further added that information shared by Finnish police indicates that Manideep travelled nearly 100 kilometres away from his residence, which he shared with a friend, before inHt news vestigators lost track of his movements.
“Despite inquiries with his roommates, friends and university authorities, no reliable information regarding his whereabouts has emerged,” he said.
Family calls for probe into 'suspicious death'
Speaking to PTI, the student's family has called for a detailed probe into the 18-year-old's death.
The family's lawyer, KLB Kumar, added that the family suspects foul play.
"We have many doubts. After two months, the body has been recovered. We strongly feel that it is a suspicious death and not a natural death," Kumar said,
"We demand that the death should be investigated properly. They (Finnish authorities) are supposed to investigate the circumstances under which the boy disappeared and how the death occurred," he said, adding that the student's parents should be allowed to go to Finland and see the body.
The lawyer further alleged that the Finnish authorities did not investigate the case "properly", and alleged that details were being "suppressed to make his death look natural."
This also comes after the lawyer claimed that Finnish police "stopped" communication with the parents regarding Reddy's whereabouts on May 29, despite repeated emails, calls and efforts to seek updates.