New York:

The Consulate Normal of India in New York is working with native regulation enforcement authorities to discover a 25-year-old Indian pupil in Cleveland who has been lacking because the starting of this month.

Mohammad Abdul Arfath, hailing from Nacharam, Hyderabad, arrived within the US in Could final 12 months to pursue a Masters in IT from Cleveland College.

His father Mohammed Saleem stated that Arfath final spoke to him on March 7. Since then, he has not been in contact together with his household and his cell phone is switched off.

The Indian Consulate stated in a submit on X that it’s in contact with Arfath’s household and authorities within the US. “We’re working with native regulation enforcement businesses to search out him on the earliest.” Arfath’s roommates within the US knowledgeable his father that they’ve lodged a lacking individuals grievance with Cleveland Police.

@IndiainNewYork is in contact with the Mr. Mohammad Abdul Arfath’s household and authorities within the US.

We’re working with native regulation enforcement businesses to search out him on the earliest. @DrSJaishankar@MEAIndia@IndianEmbassyUShttps://t.co/zbEzJSRFNN

— India in New York (@IndiainNewYork) March 20, 2024

On March 19, Arfath’s household acquired a name from an unidentified one who claimed that Arfath had been kidnapped allegedly by a gang promoting medication and demanded USD 1,200 to launch him.

The caller additionally threatened to promote Arfath’s kidneys if the ransom wasn’t paid, his father stated.

“Yesterday, I obtained a name from an unknown quantity, and the caller knowledgeable me that my son has been kidnapped and demanded cash. The caller didn’t point out the mode of cost however simply requested to pay the quantity. Once I requested the caller to permit us to speak to my son however he refused,” Saleem informed PTI in Hyderabad.

Arfath’s dad and mom have requested the central authorities to take essential measures to convey again their son safely. Saleem has additionally written to Exterior Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on this regard.

The incident is the most recent in a string of troubling instances pertaining to the protection and safety of Indian college students within the US. Because the starting of this 12 months, a number of instances of deaths of Indian and Indian-origin college students have precipitated alarm and concern among the many neighborhood.

Earlier this week, the Consulate had posted on X in regards to the dying of Abhijeeth Paruchuru, a 20-year-old Indian pupil, in Boston. Paruchuru’s dad and mom, based mostly in Connecticut, had been in direct contact with detectives and preliminary investigations into his dying had dominated out any foul play.

Indian-American Sameer Kamath, 23, a pupil at Purdue College was discovered lifeless in a nature protect in Indiana in February. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the top, based on authorities.

In January, 18-year-old Akul Dhawan, a pupil of the College of Illinois was discovered unresponsive outdoors a campus constructing. Investigations revealed that he died attributable to hypothermia. Authorities stated acute alcohol intoxication and extended publicity to extraordinarily chilly temperatures contributed to his dying.

In one other incident in January, 25-year-old Indian pupil Vivek Saini was hammered to dying by a homeless drug addict in Georgia.

(Apart from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is printed from a syndicated feed.)