Planned to break up with her partner — now he is the prime suspect in her murder
19-year-old Julissa Ruby Salazar was found dead in her Tucson, Arizona apartment after her family requested a welfare check. Her partner, 20-year-old Varun Bachigari, was arrested in Germany on an arrest warrant for kidnapping and first-degree murder.
The Tucson Police Department was called on Thursday afternoon to an apartment near the University of Arizona, following a request by the Salazar family to conduct a welfare check. Fire and rescue teams who entered the apartment found her lifeless, with signs of strangulation and scratches on her neck. Homicide investigators and forensic experts immediately began collecting evidence and questioning witnesses.
During the investigation, her partner, Varun Bachigari, became the prime suspect. However, while police were working at the scene, it was discovered that he had already left Tucson. According to police, he departed from the local airport on Thursday, flew through Houston, and from there to Germany, with plans to eventually continue to India. Investigators obtained an arrest warrant on suspicion of first-degree murder and kidnapping and contacted the FBI. Agents in Arizona and the bureau's legal attaché in Berlin coordinated with local authorities, and Bachigari was arrested immediately upon landing in Germany.
According to the New York Post, Salazar had planned to break up with him against the backdrop of a turbulent relationship and previous allegations of violence. The report also claimed she had previously alleged that Bachigari had sexually assaulted her. These allegations were published as part of the investigation and have not yet been adjudicated in court.
One of her roommates stated that on the night before the body was found, she heard loud shouting from her room for several minutes. Another roommate confirmed that Salazar had planned to break up with Bachigari. When they sent her a message to ensure she was okay, they received a reply stating it was just an argument. According to reports, after her death, Salazar's phone and credit cards were taken, and messages were sent from her phone to her mother that aroused the family's suspicion. These details were crucial in helping investigators reconstruct his movements after the incident.
According to a person interviewed during the investigation, Bachigari had studied at the University of Arizona but was expelled following a fight. It was also reported that he was a suspect in an assault incident in May, and another woman told investigators he had sexually assaulted her in the past—an allegation that was not reported to police at the time.
Bachigari is currently being held in Germany awaiting extradition proceedings to the United States. The investigation is ongoing; he has not been convicted and is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. On a fundraising page opened for her family, Salazar was described as a beloved daughter and sister who enjoyed her life as a student away from home.
