Man Reported His Ex Missing, Then Got on Flight to India. The Next Day, Police Found Her Bloodied Body By Christine Pelisek

A Maryland woman was found dead with stab wounds — and the man police believe killed her then fled to India.

On Sunday, Jan. 4, the Howard County Police Department issued an arrest warrant on first- and second-degree murder charges for 26-year-old Arjun Sharma in connection with the death of 27-year-old Nikitha Godishala.

The woman’s body was found with multiple stab wounds in Sharma’s Columbia apartment on Jan. 3 — the day after he reported her missing to police, then boarded a flight to India, authorities say.

Sharma allegedly told police he last saw Godishala on Dec. 31 in his Twin Rivers Road apartment. Detectives believe Sharma killed Godishala around 7 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, per the press release.

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Howard County police said investigators are working with United States federal law enforcement to locate and arrest Sharma.

Police described Godishala as Sharma’s ex-girlfriend, telling PEOPLE they gleaned the information from “numerous” sources.

Godishala’s father, Anand Godishala, told the Times of India that the two were former roommates and claimed his daughter was allegedly killed over a money dispute.

“He was one of the four housemates in the flat where she stayed and moved away,” he said. “Nikitha lent him money and when she asked for the money back, he called her to his house and committed the crime,” he alleged.

According to her cousin Saraswati, Godishala, went to Sharma’s apartment on Dec. 31 to collect the money he allegedly owed her, according to the Times of India.

According to the Times of India, Godishala, who had a master’s degree in health information technology, had worked at Vheda Health as a data and strategy analyst since Feb. 2025.