Purdue student who confessed to killing his dorm roommate found fit for trial
By Carl Samson
September 14, 2023
A man charged with murder for allegedly killing his roommate at Purdue University has been deemed competent to stand trial after months of treatment at the hospital.
Background: Ji Min Sha, 23, was arrested on Oct. 5, 2022, shortly after reporting that he had killed his roommate, Varun Manish Chheda, with a knife. Both were students at Purdue and were found in their shared first-floor room at McCutcheon Hall.
Chheda, 20, was a senior majoring in data science. Sha, on the other hand, was a junior international student from South Korea studying cybersecurity.
Competency determined: In April, the Tippecanoe County Court ruled that Sha was unfit for trial after two independent, court-appointed physicians reported that he displayed symptoms consistent with schizophrenia.
On Tuesday, the court deemed him fit for trial after doctors at Logansport State Hospital — where he received treatment for months — confirmed that he now has the ability to “understand the proceedings and assist in the preparation of his defense.”
Prior to his hospitalization, Sha reportedly experienced delusions and hallucinations while in jail. His medical records also show that he had been prescribed medications for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Tourette syndrome and depression since his teenage years.
What’s next: Sha is now back in county jail. A status conference has been set on Sept. 29.
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