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A passerby saw Jagadeesh Koppanati's body on the shoreline of Cedar Grove Beach in the New Dorp area of Staten Island’s East Shore around 6 a.m., Saturday, a spokesperson for the NYPD said.
The 27-year-old didn't specify where he was going when he left their house wearing a mask and gloves Friday night, his roommate told The Advance/SILive.com, speculating he may have been going to a party.
The roommate -- whose name was not published -- asked Koppanati lightheartedly if he was going to see a girl. He replied, "No, brother."
The roommate began conducting his own investigation, which turned up a receipt for an Uber ride Friday to a Colony Avenue address, in Midland Beach -- a few blocks from the shoreline and only a couple miles from where Koppanati's body was found.
Autopsy results were pending as of Monday, as the investigation into Koppanati's death continued.
More than $32,000 had been raised as of Tuesday on a GoFundMe for the 27-year-old's family, which remembered Koppanati as "a warmhearted friend, a loyal son ,and a very adored brother."
Koppanati moved from India to the U.S., earning a master’s degree in Fremont, California. He later got a job a consultant software engineer in New Jersey. His family remains in India, his roommate said.
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