The unthinkable happened on Sept. 16, 2019, when Sonam Kshatriya’s ex-boyfriend said he found her dead in the walk-in closet of her New York City apartment.
He told police that Sonam, a young professional and athlete, was hanging by the belt of her terrycloth bathrobe, which was tied to an overhead bar in the closet of her Manhattan apartment.
Her body was taken to the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), where Dr. Julian Samuel ruled the 27-year-old’s death a suicide.
Sonam’s family, knowing how much the Columbia University graduate had to look forward to while working in the music publishing industry, immediately questioned the ruling. They said there was no way she would take her own life.
Their doubts grew when the funeral director preparing her body for cremation told the family he found significant bruises, calling them “troubling,” according to a petition filed by her family in New York State Supreme Court in February 2023 and obtained by PEOPLE.
Fearing foul play, the funeral director sent Sonam’s body back to the ME’s office for another autopsy.
Dr. Samuel performed a second autopsy on Sept. 18, 2019, but still kept the death classified as suicide.
Determined to learn the truth, Sonam’s family spent years in court trying to change the ruling and urging police to investigate evidence suggesting she may have been murdered.
In May 2024, a New York State Supreme Court judge denied the family’s 2023 petition to change the manner of death, despite multiple experts arguing that Sonam had not died by suicide and had been injured in a struggle just before her death. In June 2024, the family filed a notice of appeal and is now waiting for the New York State Appeals Court to decide.
“This is an important case,” says the family’s attorney, Joseph Podraza, of Lamb McErlane, PC, in Philadelphia.
“Every citizen in New York state should be concerned about this case because medical examiners have so much power and discretion in these matters, which is almost unchecked.”
In Sonam’s case, Podraza claims, “There is considerable evidence pointing to her death being a homicide that was staged as a suicide to hide the crime.”
Questions About Sonam’s Final Hours
Sonam and her ex-boyfriend, who has not been charged with any crime in connection with her death, had broken up months before, according to the petition.
He still had limited access to her apartment to walk and feed their dog while she was at work. Two weeks before her death, his access was restricted by the building manager at Sonam’s request.
On Friday, Sept. 13, her ex-boyfriend made an “unexpected visit” that “startled” Sonam, the petition says.
The next day, Sept. 14, he sent her a text suggesting they watch a pay-per-view UFC fight at her apartment.
The ex-boyfriend said he left the apartment at 7 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15, and returned on Monday, Sept. 16, to walk their dog, when he said he found her body.
Cellphone records show Sonam didn’t use her phone after 12:16 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019, and she was found in the same clothes she wore on Saturday.
Suspicious Blood Smears
Sonam had dried blood around her nose but none on her hands when she was found. The belt she allegedly used to hang herself had blood on it, which Podraza says does not make sense.
A neuropathologist they consulted said, “From the mechanics of it, a third party was likely raising her, getting her blood on their hands, and smearing it on the belt,” Podraza explains.
Until the blood on the ligature is explained, Podraza believes, “you can’t rule out the presence of a third party.”
“At minimum,” he adds, “further investigation is needed.”
A lawyer with the New York City Law Department, which represents the OCME, said in a statement to PEOPLE that “the Law Department is not commenting while this litigation is active.”
