Man In Court Over Salford Student Murder

20 March 2012, 09:56 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

A man is in court today, charged with murdering an Indian student in Salford on Boxing Day.

20 year old Kiaran Stapleton, from Ordsall in Salford, is accused of shooting dead 23 year old Anuj Bidve, a student from Pune, India, who was studying at Lancaster University.

The accused gave the name “Psycho Stapleton” at an earlier hearing when asked his name.

Mr Bidve, described as a “promising and clever” student, was shot once in the head at around 1.30am on December 26 last year. He died a short time later in hospital.

He was with a group of fellow Indian students visiting Manchester for Christmas when he was murdered as the group walked through the Ordsall district of Salford, heading for Manchester city centre.

Mr Bidve was studying for a micro-electronics postgraduate qualification at Lancaster University, coming to the UK in September after completing an electronics degree at Pune University.

Stapleton will appear via videolink from jail for the plea and case management hearing at Manchester Crown Court today.