28-year-old Indian student Anshul Kuncha (Image – IANS)

TOI reporter in Washington: A 28-year-old Indian student from Telangana studying for an MBA was shot to death in North Philadelphia after being lured with what investigators believe was a fake pizza delivery order. The killings have sent shockwaves through American Indian communities amid fierce debates about race, ethnicity and immigration in the United States, raising concerns about the safety of migrant workers and foreign students. The victim, Anshul Kuncha, was shot in the back of the head at midnight Friday after delivering pizza to a unit at the Raymond Rosen Homes on Edgley Street that police later determined was vacant. Authorities said they have recovered surveillance footage from the area and traced the phone number used to place the order, which is now the focus of the investigation. No arrests have been announced. Kuncha hails from Gundlapochampally in Telangana’s Medchal-Malkajgiri district and has been living in the United States for several years. According to his family, he was pursuing an MBA at Temple University — some local reports say Drexel University is also in the Philadelphia area — while also trying to support himself. There are reports that he delivers pizza part-time on weekends, in addition to his other jobs. His family believes the transport was not a random robbery but a carefully planned ambush.“It was a trap,” his sister Tanvi told Indian media. She said the vacant address and circumstances suggested the perpetrators intended to lure him to the location. Family members noted that nothing appeared to have been stolen, raising questions about a motive. Local police said even the pizza that was delivered had not been touched. The killing sparked anxiety among people of Indian descent in the Philadelphia area and beyond. On social media and community forums, many questioned whether Kuncha was targeted because he is an immigrant. Others pointed to the lack of an apparent motive for the robbery as a cause for concern. Philadelphia police have not publicly determined a motive and are not classifying the case as a hate crime. North Philadelphia, specifically the area around Raymond Rosen, is considered a high-crime area. After Raymond Rosen was designated as the primary location for the Violence Prevention Support Services program in 2021, the Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded the Philadelphia Housing Association a dedicated grant to install an extensive security camera surveillance system specifically designed to deter crime and track active incidents.The Indian Consulate in New York said it was cooperating with local authorities and providing assistance to Kuncha’s family, calling for the speedy return of his body. The family also expressed regret for sending him to the United States and urged the Indian public not to take this route. The case comes amid intense concern among the Indian diaspora over a series of violent incidents involving Indian citizens in the United States over the past two years. Several Indian-origin workers have been killed in robberies or shootings across India in convenience stores, motels, gas stations, liquor stores and delivery services, industries historically popular among Indian immigrants and students. These jobs often involve late-night work and a higher risk of robbery. While many of these crimes are investigated as robberies rather than bias-motivated attacks, the recurrence of incidents has led some immigrants to view themselves as increasingly vulnerable. However, available national crime statistics do not specifically show a widespread surge in anti-Indian hate crimes, even as immigrants are being demonized by right-wing extremists. Most appear to be robberies, workplace violence or crimes of unknown motive.Civil rights experts warn against jumping to conclusions before investigators determine a motive. At the same time, advocacy groups say immigrants and minorities of color often feel they are disproportionately exposed to harassment and violence amid rising xenophobia in some states, especially Texas.The case has also sparked debate online about public responses to crimes involving immigrant victims. Some commentators have criticized high-profile figures, including Elon Musk, for remaining silent on Kuncha’s death while speaking out strongly about other high-profile killings abroad, including last year’s murder of a British youth by the son of a British Sikh immigrant, which also drew the attention of Vice President J.D. Vance. Investigators are currently focused on identifying the person who placed the delivery order and the individuals captured on surveillance video. Until an arrest is made and evidence is presented, a core question that haunts Kuncha’s family, classmates and Philadelphia’s immigrant community remains unanswered: Why was a young man committed to building a future in America lured to a vacant apartment and murdered?