Archive · 10 Aug 2026
Indian Student Accused of Arizona Girlfriend's Murder Arrested in Germany
A 20-year-old student from India named Varun Batchigari went to a university in Tucson, Arizona.
Police say he hurt his girlfriend, Julissa Rubi Salazar, who was 19, and she died.
This happened on August 6 at her apartment.
Afterward, he went to the airport and flew to Germany, planning to go back to India.
Police in Tucson worked with the FBI, and he was arrested when his plane arrived in Germany.
Investigators say he took her phone and credit cards and texted her mother while pretending to be her.
Her family got worried and asked police to check on her, and that is how officers found her body.
Firefighters found strangulation marks on her neck and called the police.
He is now charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping, and he will be brought back to Arizona to face the charges.
Varun Batchigari, 20, an Indian business analytics student at the University of Arizona, is accused of murdering his 19-year-old girlfriend Julissa Rubi Salazar on August 6 at her Tucson apartment.
Batchigari was arrested in Germany on charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping after boarding a flight from Tucson International Airport with plans to continue to India.
Tucson Police said custody was secured through coordination among TPD, the FBI Tucson Office, and the FBI Legal Attache Office in Berlin, preventing him from continuing his travel.
Investigators allege he took Salazar's cellphone and credit cards and sent text messages posing as her to her mother, prompting a welfare check that led officers to discover her body.
The arrest warrant cites a prior assault case investigated by University of Arizona Police, witnesses' accounts of an alleged history of domestic violence and a reported unreported sexual assault allegation; he awaits extradition to the Pima County Adult Detention Complex.
- Who
- Varun Batchigari, 20, an Indian business analytics student at the University of Arizona; the victim was his 19-year-old girlfriend Julissa Rubi Salazar.
- What
- Batchigari is accused of first-degree murder and kidnapping in Salazar's death and was arrested in Germany while attempting to flee to India.
- When
- The alleged killing occurred on August 6; he was arrested upon his arrival in Germany.
- Where
- The alleged killing occurred at Salazar's apartment in Tucson, Arizona; the arrest took place in Germany.
- Why
- Witnesses said Salazar planned to end the relationship over an alleged history of domestic violence; investigators allege he also tried to conceal the crime by posing as her in text messages.
- Suspect
- Varun Batchigari, 20, business analytics student at the University of Arizona
- Victim
- Julissa Rubi Salazar, 19
- Charges
- First-degree murder and kidnapping
- Date of alleged killing
- August 6
- Location
- Tucson, Arizona, USA
- Arrest location
- Germany, before a connecting flight to India
- Investigating agencies
- Tucson Police Department, FBI Tucson Office, FBI Legal Attache Office in Berlin
- Next step
- Extradition to Arizona; booking at the Pima County Adult Detention Complex
Sources
Indian man accused of US girlfriend's murder arrested in Germany
Indian student arrested in Germany over girlfriend’s murder in US
Indian student accused of girlfriend’s murder in Arizona arrested in Germany - Telegraph India
