Parents of deceased Indian-American student accuse Illinois varsity police of negligence

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The parents of University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign student Akul B. Dhawan, 18, have filed a lawsuit against the school's police department, claiming that their son's death was handled carelessly. About ten hours after going missing in the vicinity of the university campus in west Urbana, Akul was discovered dead and showing symptoms of hypothermia stated a report in PTI.

According to the report, preliminary findings point to hypothermia, but the Illinois State Police, university police, and Champaign County Coroner's Office are still investigating the actual cause of Akul's death. The death is first thought to have been an accident, according to the university police, who claim that there is no proof of foul play.

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Ish and Ritu Dhawan, Dhawan's parents, have questioned the efficacy of the search effort and charged incompetence on the part of the university police department. The bereaved parents stress that, according to location-tracking information from his phone, their son was discovered about 400 feet from the place where he was reported missing, the PTI report further read.

Ish Dhawan, per PTI, told the newspaper, "This is bizarre, that a kid is never found who was just less than a block, like one minute away, sitting there, dead, frozen to death. Imagine what's going through in our mind as a dad and mom. I visualise every minute that my son froze to death on a university campus."

"We need answers. What is the proof that they searched in this area, around the area they're talking (about), this half-block? My kid would have been found," she said demanding answers from the authorities.

The last observed location, the residence hall, potential routes between sites, and nearby hospitals were all examined during the university police search operation. They searched everywhere, but they could not find Akul. The family has doubts about the extent of the search, particularly in light of the student's proximity to the reported missing place, the PTI report stated.

Despite his parents' wishes for him to remain nearer to home, Dhawan, who turned 18 in September, was studying robotics at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the report added.