Court hearing over shooting of Indian student

A man appeared in court today over the December 26 murder of an Indian student in Britain.

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

The accused called himself “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. 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 Ordsall 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 appeared via videolink for the brief hearing at Manchester Crown Court today.

A further hearing is expected later this year.