Washington: US President Donald Trump has reacted sharply to the brutal beheading of Indian-origin motel manager, Chandra Nagamallaiah, in Dallas.
He vowed that the accused, Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, would face first-degree murder charges and threatened consequences for those sheltering such criminals. He also addressed Chandra Nagamallaiah as a well-respected person.
Trump emphasised that “time for being soft” on illegal immigrant criminals is over. “I am aware of the terrible reports regarding the murder of Chandra Nagamallaiah, a well respected person in Dallas, Texas, who was brutally beheaded, in front of his wife and son, by an ILLEGAL ALIEN from Cuba who should have never been in our Country,” he posted on Truth Social on Sunday.
He criticised the Biden administration for releasing 37-year-old Cobos-Martinez from an ICE detention facility in January 2025, after Cuba refused to accept his deportation due to his violent criminal history. “This individual was previously arrested for terrible crimes, including child sex abuse, grand theft auto, and false imprisonment, but was released back into our Homeland under incompetent Joe Biden because Cuba did not want such an evil person in their Country.”
Trump vowed to “make America safe again” through stricter border security and aggressive removal of criminal undocumented immigrants.
The statement has come after days of outrage across the Indian-American community and a renewed debate over US immigration policy.
The Indian-American politicians were also trolled for their silence over the gruesome incident. When Republican leader Vivek Ramaswamy later condemned it as a horrific act of lawlessness, the netizens slammed him again for not mentioning that the victim was of Indian origin.
The Incident
The accused allegedly used a machete to decapitate 50-year-old Nagamallaiah, his boss, in the early hours of Wednesday at the Downtown Suites motel after an altercation over instructions about a broken washing machine. The Cobos-Martinez allegedly became enraged after Nagamallaiah asked him not to use the malfunctioning machine through a translator.
Cobos-Martinez repeatedly struck Nagamallaiah before beheading him. He then kicked and tossed the head into a trash bin. The gruesome act was witnessed by the victim’s wife and teenage son, who attempted to intervene, and was caught on hotel security cameras.
The accused was later arrested nearby in a blood-stained shirt. He has been charged with capital murder.
