DALLAS (Diya TV) — President Donald Trump called the brutal killing of 50-year-old Indian American hotel manager Chandra Mouli Nagamallaiah in Dallas “terrible” and vowed stricter action against undocumented immigrants who commit crimes.
Authorities say the suspect, 37-year-old Cuban national Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, beheaded Nagamallaiah on Sept. 10 in front of his wife and son at a Dallas motel. The violent slaying has shaken the Indian American community and sparked national outrage over U.S. immigration enforcement.
Writing on Truth Social, Trump said the crime was committed by “an illegal alien from Cuba who should have never been in our Country.” He pledged that under his leadership, “the time for being soft on these Illegal Immigrant Criminals is OVER.”
Trump’s statement came after Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed Cobos-Martinez’s long criminal history. ICE said the Cuban national faced previous charges, including child sex abuse, grand theft, false imprisonment, and carjacking.
On Sept. 12, ICE announced Cobos-Martinez had been charged with murder. Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin condemned the killing and blamed the Biden administration for his release.
“This vile monster beheaded this man in front of his wife and child and proceeded to kick the victim’s head on the ground,” McLaughlin said. She added that the attack was “completely preventable if this criminal illegal alien was not released into our country by the Biden Administration since Cuba would not take him back.”
McLaughlin said the new Trump administration is enforcing tougher deportation policies. “If you come to our country illegally, you could end up in Eswatini, Uganda, South Sudan, or CECOT,” she said.
Cobos-Martinez had a past final order of removal to Cuba. But because Cuba refused to accept him, he remained in the U.S. under supervision. ICE records show he was most recently held at the Bluebonnet Detention Center in Dallas until his release on Jan. 13, 2025.
The suspect’s record includes a 2017 carjacking in South Lake Tahoe, where he was arrested naked. He was convicted of that crime in 2023. He also faced charges of indecency with a child and assault in 2018. At the time of the Dallas murder, he had an active warrant for probation violation in California.
Indian American leaders and elected officials condemned the killing. Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois said, “I am horrified by the brutal murder of Chandra Nagamallaiah, a hardworking Indian American immigrant killed in Dallas in front of his wife and son. My deepest condolences go to his family. The perpetrator must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
Republican figure Vivek Ramaswamy also reacted strongly on X. “An innocent Dallas hotel manager was brutally beheaded in front of his wife & son, by an illegal migrant who had a final order of removal & such a bad criminal history that Cuba refused to accept him,” he wrote. “He was released on Jan. 13, right before Biden left office. This is horrific. It’s time to restore the rule of law.”
In another post, Ramaswamy called the crime “unconscionable” and said, “The fact this isn’t a bigger story shows how numb we’ve become to preventable violence. This has to end.”
According to an arrest affidavit, the confrontation began when Nagamallaiah told Cobos-Martinez not to use a broken washing machine. He then asked another employee to translate the instruction. Witnesses said Cobos-Martinez became angry, left the room, and returned with a machete. He then attacked Nagamallaiah multiple times, killing him in front of his family.
Cobos-Martinez was arrested and charged with capital murder. He is currently being held at the Dallas County Jail.
The murder has sparked calls for stronger immigration enforcement and raised concerns about public safety. Leaders from both parties say Nagamallaiah’s killing could have been prevented.
