Austin murder-suicide doctor accused of abusing his ex-wife

The doctor with terminally ill cancer who killed a pediatrician before committing suicide at an Austin medical office has previously been accused of abusing his ex-wife – whom he called “unlucky,” according to court documents.

Dr Bharat Narumanchi, who police said took hostages before killing Dr Katherine Lindley Dodson, 43, in a murder-suicide at Children’s Medical Group on Tuesday night, was charged with domestic violence in Hawaii in 2012, but the case was then closed. , reported the Austin American-Statesman.

Narumanchi, 43, called his ex-wife in a filing “an unhappy person from childhood,” claiming that she only married him to obtain American citizenship which “eluded her when she lived in the United States. United as a student, ”the newspaper reported.

Court records cited by KXAN show Narumanchi filed for divorce in 2012. The couple had joint custody of their daughter, and records link Narumanchi to a house in north Austin, where residents of the same last name currently live. , but he is not listed as one of its owners, the station reported.

Austin Police Lt. Jeff Greenwalt said investigators believed the doctor’s diagnosis of terminal cancer “likely played a big role” in the taking of four hostages who escaped or were freed prior to the event. arrival of the cops.

The hostages told Statesman-America that Narumanchi broke into the office around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday carrying two travel bags, a pistol and a shotgun.

Narumanchi’s relatives, meanwhile, told investigators they had started to inquire about palliative care for the doctor following his diagnosis of having only “weeks” to live. Police did not say what type of cancer he had, KXAN reported.

Public records cited by the Statesman-American show that Narumanchi lived in multiple states. He recently practiced at Providence Health Services in Southern California and also obtained medical licenses in Oklahoma, Connecticut, Wisconsin and Florida, according to employment records.

After graduating from MD in 2008 at St. George’s University School of Medicine in Grenada, Narumanchi worked for 18 months at St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Manhattan before being fired in December 2009, KXAN reported.

Narumanchi then filed a grievance over his termination, then rejected a proposed settlement, Federal Court records show.

The doctor then filed a claim for $ 24,700 in bankruptcy court when the now-defunct hospital filed for Chapter 11 in 2010, but it was later revised to just $ 1,524, according to records.

In 2012, Narumanchi obtained a “Doctor and Surgeon A” license to practice medicine in California, where it was valid until August 2022, KXAN reported.

It is still unclear why Narumanchi targeted the hospital, although he was turned down for a volunteer position at the facility weeks ago, investigators said. A staff member told the US statesman that Narumanchi did not meet Dodson during this visit.

“We don’t know if that is why he decided to come back or if there is any other involvement he may have had,” Greenwalt said Wednesday.

Narumanchi’s parents said in a statement Wednesday that they were cooperating with investigators, but “did not understand” what had motivated their son to murder.

“The consequences of this action will live with us forever and we can only hope that faith, spiritual healing, and the light of God will guide us through the darkness of this moment,” the statement read.