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FIRST ON FOX: “This happening to her feels so unfair in so many ways,” said the mother of slain University of Arizona student Julissa “Julie” Salazar.
Salazar, 19, was found strangled to death in her apartment near campus on Thursday.
Investigators say her alleged killer, Varun Batchigari, 20, from India, boarded a flight out of the U.S. and was captured by law enforcement in Berlin, Germany.
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Reports say his alleged motive may have been tied to a breakup with Salazar.
Her mother told Fox News Digital that Salazar had “broken up” with the suspect before she was found dead.
“She had already had that conversation with him” about ending the relationship, said Salazar’s mother, who asked not to be identified.
Federal law enforcement sources confirmed to Fox News that Batchigari entered the U.S. on an F-1 student visa in January 2024.
In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said:
“Indian national Varun Batchigari is a foreign student who lawfully entered the United States and enrolled at the University of Arizona in January of 2024 under the Biden administration. As this is an ongoing criminal investigation, limited information is available at this time. Visas provided to foreign students to live, study, and work in the United States are a privilege, not a right. When you break our laws, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country. ICE, like all our federal and local law enforcement partners, is focused on public safety.”
He was expelled from the University of Arizona following a “fight,” KOLD reported.
The university confirmed to Fox News Digital that Batchigari was expelled on July 22.
“We can confirm that Julissa Rubi Salazar was a University of Arizona student and offer our deepest condolences to her family, friends and all who knew her as a member of our campus community,” the university said in a statement. “We have been in contact with Julissa’s family and are providing support and resources to those who need them during this very difficult time.”
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“He no longer had any business here [in the U.S.] or around the student body, especially as a threat,” Salazar’s mother said.
Court records from Pima County, Arizona, indicate the University of Arizona Police Department charged Batchigari with assault on May 26.
Before his expulsion, he was a business analytics student who said, “I don’t see work as my purpose. I see it as a tool, something that helps me build a life I actually want,” according to a video he posted to his YouTube account.
In the video he posted in April, he said, “I want to travel, see different places, experience different cultures, and do that with someone I care about.”
As Batchigari awaits extradition back to the U.S., the Salazar family is beginning to come to terms with their new normal.
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Salazar leaves behind her mother, father and two younger sisters. She was a “bright light,” her mother said – in more ways than one.
Salazar was just 17 years old when she began her studies – with a scholarship – at UA.
“She was our first-generation child going off to college. So this was a huge deal for our entire family,” her mother said.
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She went on to say, “Us sending her off to be able to live that dream that she wanted to live was such an amazing and proud moment for us.”
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Before she was killed, she was an aspiring child psychologist working toward her degree at UA; her mother said she was about to begin her third year at the university.
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“She was a big advocate for survivors. She was a big advocate for new first-generation students. She was a big advocate for mental health.”
Prior to her academic career at UA, Salazar graduated from high school in the top 5% of her class, her mother said.
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“She skipped seventh grade and moved on to eighth grade because of how smart she is,” her mother said.
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“I know we will get justice for my baby girl,” she said.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to authorities in Berlin, Germany, for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price contributed to this report.
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