Yogesth Honnala Nagarajappa, Indian tech worker in search of better life for family shoots wife, son, 6 years old, then self at Baltimore, Maryland home. No known motive.
An Indian family who had come to the United States in search of a ‘better life’ were found dead at Baltimore, Maryland residence last week, in what authorities suspect was the result of a double murder suicide.
Yogesth Honnala Nagarajappa, a tech worker is thought to have shot his wife, Prathiba Y. Amarnath and their 6 year old son Yash Honnal before killing himself. The incident reportedly happened on August 18 in the 1000 block of Kenilworth Drive in Towson, Baltimore police stated.
The family who hailed from the Davanagere, Karnataka region in India were found deceased during a wellness check at the request of a concerned family member according to a release from the Baltimore County Police Department.
‘The Office of the Chief Medical Officer will complete a thorough examination into the manner and cause of death. Family members were reportedly last seen alive on the evening of Tuesday, August 15, 2023,’ Baltimore County Police Department added.
NewIndian Express reported Yogesh being in the US for nine years after his marriage with Prathibha, who joined him two years ago. The couple was working with a tech company in the US. The outlet said both husband and wife were software engineers.
Family struggle to understand what led to murders
No known motive was immediately known.
According to the alleged gunman’s mother, she had spoken to her son only days before the tragedy, telling Indian media that Nagarajappa had mentioned traveling to India with the family in December.
The woman said: ‘I spoke to my son a week ago. He said he would try and visit India in December. And suddenly, I receive a call saying they are all dead.
‘I don’t know what happened, how they died. We haven’t even seen their bodies. I don’t know what to do.’
‘I am heartbroken and deeply saddened for the innocent victims whose lives were cut short by this horrific act,’ said County Executive Johnny Olzewski in a statement reported by CBS News Baltimore.
‘Drawn by dreams and hopes for a better life’
A GoFundMe was started to bring the remains of Yogesh, Pratibha, and their son back to India. Their relative Soma Sekhar, who launched the fundraiser, wrote, ‘Yogesh, his cherished wife Pratibha, and their vibrant 6-year-old son Yash were the embodiment of a joyous family.’
Sekhar continued, ‘Drawn by dreams and hopes for a better life, they chose Towson as their home in the U.S. Tragically, they fell victim to a harrowing incident, their lives ending far too soon.’
Dhyamana Gowda, cousin of Yogesh told NewIndian Express in part: ‘Yogesh was an amiable and jovial person. He had studied in various parts of Karnataka as his father Nagarajappa was a tahsildar. After marrying Prathibha, a resident of Electronics City in Bengaluru, he moved to America,” Gowda said. The family was close-knit and there were no differences between husband and wife, he added.Yogesh’s father took voluntary retirement from service, and died two years ago, while his brother Puneeth is also a techie working at Bengaluru. The family was from Jagaluru taluk.’
Family members have now approached Indian authorities to help them repatriate the mortal remains of the deceased.
As of Tuesday morning, the fundraiser had raised, $46,451 USD.
