Akul Dhawan, an Indian-American student of 18 years studying at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the US, tragically passed away last month. He was reportedly unaccounted for several hours prior to his death. The Champaign County Coroner’s Office in Illinois recently revealed that Dhawan’s death was caused by hypothermia, a condition significantly exacerbated by “acute alcohol intoxication and extended exposure to sub-zero temperatures.”
College student froze to death near club that denied him entry, Illinois officials say https://t.co/gHV0kmyJrH
— The Kansas City Star (@KCStar) February 21, 2024
On January 20, the student was tragically discovered deceased on the rear porch of a structure in close proximity to the university campus in West Urbana, Illinois, USA. Indications of hypothermia were present when his body was discovered, however, the precise cause of death was still being investigated by the university’s police force.
Akul spent the evening socializing with friends. At approximately 11:30 PM, they chose to visit the Canopy Club, a popular spot near the campus that they had frequented earlier that night.
Entry to the club was denied to him by the staff. Despite his multiple attempts to gain access, he was consistently turned away by the personnel, as per the investigators’ report. It was also noted that he declined two rideshare vehicles that were summoned for him, as reported by Kansas City.
During the latter part of January, Illinois and a significant portion of the Midwest were subjected to harshly cold and freezing conditions. The wind chill factor plummeted to between -20 and -30 degrees.
Numerous attempts to reach him over the phone proved futile, prompting a friend to alert the campus police for assistance in locating him. As per the police report, an officer embarked on a search for Dhawan, driving at a leisurely pace along the probable route Dhawan would have taken to return to the campus. However, the officer was unable to spot him.
The following morning, a university staff member alerted the police and emergency services about the presence of “a man on the back porch of a building”. According to the police, he was already “deceased when discovered”.
Akul’s parents, Ish and Ritu Dhawan, stated that their son was discovered a mere 400 feet away from the location where he was reported missing, as indicated by the location-tracking data on his phone.
Dhawan, who celebrated his 18th birthday in September of the previous year as reported by The News-Gazette, chose to pursue robotics at the University of Illinois’ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. This decision was made against his parents’ wishes, who preferred him to stay closer to home.
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