Indian student dies after being struck by a police vehicle in US

New York, Jan 26

A 23-year-old student from Andhra Pradesh died after being struck by a police patrol vehicle in Seattle, a media report said.

Jaahnavi Kandula, a student of Northeastern University campus in South Lake Union, was walking near Dexter Avenue North and Thomas Street when she was hit by a Seattle Police vehicle on Monday, The Seattle Times reported.

Police arrived at the scene just after 8 p.m. and immediately started with CPR after they found Kandula with life threatening injuries. She was later transported to Harborview Medical Center in critical condition where she succumbed to her injuries.

The officer driving the patrol SUV was responding to a priority one call at the request of the Seattle Fire Department just after 8 p.m., according to the Seattle Police Department. The police did not name the officer but said in a statement that he has been with the department since November 2019.

"At this point in the investigation, we have no reason to believe the officer intended to hit that woman," Seattle Police Department spokesperson Detective Valerie Carson told Seattle Times.

Carson further said that Kandula's death will not be investigated as a use of force case, and the officer has not been placed on leave.

"I was in shock," Ashok Mandula, victim's uncle, told Seattle Times after he was informed of the tragedy.

He said Kandula first travelled to the United States in 2021 from Adoni in Andhra Pradesh's Kurnool district, and spent a month with his family.

Daughter of a single mother who teaches in an elementary school in Adoni, Kandula was to receive a master's in information systems this December, Mandula told Times.

He added that Kandula's mother had taken a loan for her education. Detectives from the Traffic Collision Investigation Squad will lead the investigation, Seattle Police said.