LONDON: Eight men have been arrested in connection with the murder of an Indian restaurant manager who was killed when cycling home from work on Valentine’s Day.
Vignesh Pattabi Raman (36), an Indian citizen from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, was declared dead at the Royal Berkshire Hospital after being hit by a vehicle just before midnight on Feb 14 on nearby Addington Road in a residential area of Reading.After leaving him for dead, the vehicle then sped off.
Thames Valley police major crime unit have launched a murder investigation. A police spokesperson said: “It is believed that the cyclist was also assaulted by an occupant of the vehicle, which then left the scene.”
A 24-year-old man from Reading was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday morning. Seven men, aged 20, 21, 24, 27, 31, 41 and 48, all from Reading, were also arrested on Monday on suspicion of assisting an offender. All remain in police custody.
India-born Raman had moved to Britain a year ago from Doha, where he had been working in a Hyatt hotel, to take up the job of restaurant manager at Vel, an affordable authentic South Indian eatery in Reading popular with the Indian community. He lived in Reading with his wife, Ramya, also an Indian national.
The day he was killed was his last day at work as he had recently landed a job to run a restaurant at the Hyatt Regency London — The Churchill in Marylebone.
“His wife is naturally devastated. They are a young couple who had moved to UK for a better life and she has lost her husband in the first year. His parents in Coimbatore want to come to UK straight away and we request the UK government to issue them an emergency visa as soon as possible,” a family friend told TOI.
A JustGiving page has been set up to help raise funds for his grieving family to cover the cost of repatriation of his body, funeral expenses, and to ease the burden on his family. By Monday night £7,000 had been raised in a matter of hours.
Detective chief inspector Stuart Brangwin said: “Our thoughts remain with the family of Mr Raman, who are being supported by specially trained officers. We are continuing our investigation into the circumstances of his death.”
The JustGiving page states: “Vignesh was a committed restaurant manager at Vel, where he poured his heart and soul into his work, earning recognition for his exceptionally warm nature, customer service and work ethics. His dream of reaching a senior management position in the hotel industry was within reach, with an exciting opportunity awaiting him at Hyatt Regency.”
Vignesh Pattabi Raman (36), an Indian citizen from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, was declared dead at the Royal Berkshire Hospital after being hit by a vehicle just before midnight on Feb 14 on nearby Addington Road in a residential area of Reading.After leaving him for dead, the vehicle then sped off.
Thames Valley police major crime unit have launched a murder investigation. A police spokesperson said: “It is believed that the cyclist was also assaulted by an occupant of the vehicle, which then left the scene.”
A 24-year-old man from Reading was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday morning. Seven men, aged 20, 21, 24, 27, 31, 41 and 48, all from Reading, were also arrested on Monday on suspicion of assisting an offender. All remain in police custody.
India-born Raman had moved to Britain a year ago from Doha, where he had been working in a Hyatt hotel, to take up the job of restaurant manager at Vel, an affordable authentic South Indian eatery in Reading popular with the Indian community. He lived in Reading with his wife, Ramya, also an Indian national.
The day he was killed was his last day at work as he had recently landed a job to run a restaurant at the Hyatt Regency London — The Churchill in Marylebone.
“His wife is naturally devastated. They are a young couple who had moved to UK for a better life and she has lost her husband in the first year. His parents in Coimbatore want to come to UK straight away and we request the UK government to issue them an emergency visa as soon as possible,” a family friend told TOI.
A JustGiving page has been set up to help raise funds for his grieving family to cover the cost of repatriation of his body, funeral expenses, and to ease the burden on his family. By Monday night £7,000 had been raised in a matter of hours.
Detective chief inspector Stuart Brangwin said: “Our thoughts remain with the family of Mr Raman, who are being supported by specially trained officers. We are continuing our investigation into the circumstances of his death.”
The JustGiving page states: “Vignesh was a committed restaurant manager at Vel, where he poured his heart and soul into his work, earning recognition for his exceptionally warm nature, customer service and work ethics. His dream of reaching a senior management position in the hotel industry was within reach, with an exciting opportunity awaiting him at Hyatt Regency.”