Saketh Sreenivasaiah Death Case: What Roommate Revealed About 22-Year-Old Final Weeks, Recalls Last Words and How ‘He Had Stopped Caring’

A 22-year-old Indian student was found dead in California six days after he was reported missing. Saketh Sreenivasaiah, originally from Karnataka, was studying Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and had been untraceable since February 9. 

As details surrounding his death emerged, his roommate, Baneet Singh, shared an emotional account of Saketh’s final weeks, revealing there were no signs of anything until the last two weeks.

The Indian Consulate in San Francisco confirmed that authorities have recovered his body and said that all necessary assistance would be provided to ensure the early repatriation of his remains ot India. 

Saketh Sreenivasaiah Body Recovered After 6 Days 

Authorities have launched a citywide search across Lake Anza and the Berkeley Hills areas after Saketh Sreenivasaiah was reported missing, having last been seen about a kilometre from the campus. 

Subsequently, his backpack, containing his passport and laptop, was discovered near a house close to Tilden Regional Park, also in the vicinity of the university. 

His father, Saketh Sreenivasaiah, said he last spoke to his son on Gebruary 9,  and that the family has been trying to piece together information ever since. We still haven’t been able to locate him. We are in touch with his roommates and others. We have written to the government seeking support and assistance to find our son,” he told news agency PTI.

What Roommate Revealed About Saketh Sreenivasaiah Final Weeks

In a LinkedIn post, Saketh Sreenivasaiah’s roommate, Baneet Singh, said he was coordinating with authorities to help bring Saketh Sreenivasaiah’s family from India to the United States on an emergency visa. Reflecting on the challenges faced by international students, he noted that there had been no clear signs of distress until the past two weeks. 

He said that the 22-year-old had “started eating less and engaging less, only surviving on chips and cookies”. Singh also mentioned that Saketh had invited him to visit Lake Anza on January 21, but he chose not to join, admitting he had been too lazy to go at the time.

Saketh Sreenivasaiah Final Word 

Baneet Singh also shared details of his final words with Saketh Sreenivasaiah.  He recalled seeing the 22-year-old returning from class dressed in a red bathrobe and asking him why he had worn it to class. 

Singh asked him, “Why are you wearing a robe to class?” Sreenivasaiah responded, “I’ve stopped caring, man. I’m cold and don’t care what anyone thinks of me. I don’t care about anything.” 

Singh regretted laughing at his roommate’s remarks at the time, saying he thought “Saketh was just being silly as usual”.”He was always up to something silly. Now I know that he really meant it. The opposite of life was never death. It was indifference. To stop caring, which led to him not caring for his own life, either,” Singh wrote in his public post on LinkedIn. 

Baneet Singh called on people to take Sreenivasaiah’s death as a reminder to reach out to loved ones and check on them. “I didn’t expect this from a friend who lived, ate, travelled, laughed and joked with me. It hurts,” he added. 

He stated that he would be taking time off from social media to mourn and spend time with his friends, urging others to do the same. “Take this news as a way to bring together love with friends, instead of sitting in sorrow. Saketh would have wanted that for you all, too,” Singh wrote. 

Who Was Saketh Sreenivasaiah?

Saketh Sreenivasaiah was a promising young engineer with an impressive academic journey spanning India and the United States. 

As per his LinkedIn, he was pursuing a Master’s degree in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. 

Prior to relocation to the US, he earned his Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. 

On LinkedIn, he introduced himself as “I’m a Master’s student in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department at UC Berkeley, with an undergraduate degree from IIT Madras. I’m passionate about deep-tech innovations in soft and active materials, semiconductors, and advanced materials.”