U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed former President Joe Biden’s immigration policies for the brutal killing of an Indian-origin motel manager in Dallas, allegedly by an undocumented Cuban immigrant with a criminal record.
Chandra Mouli “Bob” Nagamallaiah, 50, originally from Karnataka, was attacked with a machete on 10 September at the Downtown Suites Motel, where he lived and worked.
The assault, carried out in front of his wife and 18-year-old son, ended in his beheading and has left the Indian-American community deeply shaken.
The accused, Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, has been charged with capital murder.
U.S. immigration officials confirmed he had previously been detained but was released in January 2025 after Cuba refused to accept his deportation.
Posting on his Truth Social platform, President Trump described the suspect as an “Illegal Alien” who should have been removed from the country, accusing Biden of pursuing “incompetent and lenient” policies.
“I am aware of the terrible reports regarding the murder of Chandra Nagamallaiah, a well-respected person in Dallas, Texas, who was brutally beheaded … by an ILLEGAL ALIEN from Cuba who should have never been in our Country,”
he wrote.
“Rest assured, the time for being soft on these Illegal Immigrant Criminals is OVER under my watch.”
According to an arrest affidavit, the deadly attack began after a dispute over a broken washing machine. Disturbing security footage shows Cobos-Martinez chasing Nagamallaiah through the motel, attacking him repeatedly, and later desecrating his body.
Nagamallaiah, who moved to the U.S. in 2018, was known among friends as “Bob.” He is survived by his wife, Nisha, and son, Gaurav, who recently graduated from high school and hopes to study hospitality management.
His funeral was held on 13 September in Flower Mound, Texas, attended by family and friends. A fundraiser for his family has so far raised more than USD 321,000.
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