52-year-old Indian American Dies After Struck by a Car in Ohio and a 26-year-old Indian Student Killed in Random Shooting

A 52-year-old Indian American man died this past weekend after being struck by a car in Ohio’s Medina County. Piyush Patel of Brunswick Hills Township “was walking southbound along Substation Road, when a 019 Volkswagen Golf GTI hit him,” NBC affiliate WKYC reported, citing a press release from the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Patel sustained fatal injuries as a result of the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene, the press release added. The 25-year-old who operated the car that struck Patel did not sustain any injuries, the release said, adding that the investigation is ongoing. 

In Cincinnati, a graduate student from India lost his life to gun violence, another stark reminder of the impact of gun violence on individuals and communities. Aaditya Adlakha, 26, a fourth-year doctoral student at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, was driving on Nov. 9 morning, when gunfire erupted. Police found him inside the vehicle that had collided with a wall on the upper deck of the Western Hills Viaduct. His vehicle was hit “multiple times,” Cincinnati Enquirer reported, adding that “there were at least three bullet holes visible in the driver’s side window.” He was taken to UC Medical Center and was in critical condition for several days,” the Cincinnati Enquirer report said. The circumstances surrounding the shooting are still under investigation.

The University of Cincinnati issued a statement remembering Adlakha, who was enrolled in the molecular and developmental biology program. “He was much-loved, exceedingly kind and humorous, intelligent and sharp, whose research was described as novel and transformative,” read a joint statement by Dr. Andrew Filak Jr., senior vice president for health affairs, and Christian Holmes, professor and dean of the College of Medicine.

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According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Adlakha came to Cincinnati from north India to continue his education in medicine. He got his bachelor’s degree in zoology in 2018 from Ramjas College of the University of Delhi, and a master’s degree in physiology in 2020 from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, also in New Delhi. Last year, he received a stipend and an award to support a research project on ulcerative colitis, the report said. He was expected to complete his doctorate in 2025.