A 23-year-old woman from Punjab's Ludhiana district was allegedly strangled to death at her home in Edmonton, Canada, with police arresting her live-in partner, also an Indian national, in connection with the case.
The victim, Damanpreet Kaur, was a resident of Samrala and had moved to Canada on a student visa.
According to the Edmonton Police Service (EPS), officers responded on July 9 to reports of an unresponsive woman with suspicious injuries at a residence in the Silverberry neighbourhood of southeast Edmonton.
Kaur was rushed to a hospital with critical injuries but succumbed to them on July 12, police said.
An autopsy conducted on July 14 determined that she died from strangulation, with the medical examiner ruling the death a homicide.
Police arrested 22-year-old Ritish Kumar on July 22 and charged him with second-degree murder. Investigators said the case is being treated as an intimate partner homicide and confirmed that no other suspects are being sought.
According to family members quoted by The New Indian Express, Kaur had moved to Canada around five years ago after her parents reportedly took out a loan to support her higher education and future abroad.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe campaign launched to bring Kaur's body back to India has raised more than $18,000, moving close to its $20,000 fundraising goal.
