UIPD releases additional details in student death investigation
URBANA, Illinois – University of Illinois Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the Jan. 20 death of Akul Dhawan, a student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Information collected so far supports the initial belief that the death was accidental, and no foul play occurred. Mr. Dhawan, 18, was found deceased at about 11:08 a.m. Jan. 20 in the 1200 block of West Nevada Street, Urbana. A friend who lost contact with Mr. Dhawan had called police at 1:23 a.m. that morning, expressing that he was concerned for Mr. Dhawan. Investigators have assembled a timeline of the initial [...]
Fake investment scheme
A U. of I. student reported that he befriended an unknown person through Instagram who got him interested in an investment plan involving cryptocurrency. The student transferred as much as $40,000 to the fake account over the course of several months. When he asked to withdraw the money, the person facilitating the investments cut off communication.
Fake customer support
A U. of I. student reported that he was experiencing issues with his Apple AirPods and Googled the customer support number. The student called the number and spoke with an individual purporting to be a customer service representative. The representative ultimately told the student that all his Apple devices had been hacked and transferred him to another person who said he was a bank representative who would help him protect his financial data. The bank representative told him there was criminal activity on his account, and that the student had to transfer $2,900 in the form of BitCoin to a [...]
Fake tickets
A U. of I. student reported that someone purporting to be another U. of I. student in a GroupMe chat offered concert tickets for sale. The purchaser asked for confirmation of the seller's identity, and the seller offered a photo of herself holding her student identification. The purchaser sent $450 to the seller via Zelle, and the seller subsequently cut off communication. It was later determined that the student who was implicated as the seller had herself been involved in a similar scam, during which the student sent the scammer a photo of herself holding her student identification.
University Police investigating student death
URBANA, Illinois – University of Illinois Police are investigating after an 18-year-old U. of I. student was found deceased Saturday morning in the 1200 block of West Nevada Street, Urbana. Preliminary information suggests that there was no foul play involved, and the death is initially believed to be accidental. The investigation is ongoing, and the status may change as new information is collected. At 1:23 a.m. Saturday morning, the student’s friend called police to say that he had not seen the student for about an hour and could not reach him via telephone. University Police searched the area where the [...]