Suspect in Killing of College Student ID'd After Tipster Claims to Know Him from 'Sugar Daddy' Website

Mar. 15, 2025

Muna Pandey.Photo:GoFundMe

GoFundMe

The criminal complaint cites accounts from the victim’s friends, neighbor and employer, who all say they last heard from Pandey on Saturday, Aug. 24. The neighbor told authorities he heard “loud thumping” that evening from her apartment and had not seen Pandey since then.

According to the complaint, Pandey’s friend said the victim had previously been stalked. The complaint states that Pandey installed a security video system, which ultimately helped authorities determine what happened.

Houston Police Dept.

The complaint claims security footage from Saturday, Aug. 24, shows Pandey outside her apartment with shopping bags while Shah allegedly points a gun at her and compels her to enter the home. A little more than an hour later, Shah is allegedly seen leaving the apartment with one of Pandey’s bags.

After police released a photo of the suspect taken from Pandey’s security footage, a local restaurant owner told police that an acquaintance allegedly identified Shah as a regular patron at his establishment, where Pandey previously worked.

On Aug. 28, a woman called police to notify them that she allegedly knew the suspect from a “Sugar Daddy” website from 2012 and “instantly” recognized him as Shah, per the complaint.

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“No mother should have to face such heartbreak, especially from so far away,” reads a part of the fundraiser, adding that funds raised will be used to “ease the financial burden during this tragic time and allow Anita to be present for her daughter’s final journey.”

Online court records of the Harris County District Clerk’s office show Shah is being held without bond. He is also facing a charge of unlawfully carrying a weapon. Lawyers listed for him in court records did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

source: people.com