Tragedy Strikes: Four Elderly Indian-Origin Family Members Found Dead After West Virginia Pilgrimage

The bodies of four elderly individuals from an Indian-origin family, who vanished during a pilgrimage to a religious site in West Virginia, have been recovered. The Marshall County Sheriff, Mike Doherty, provided confirmation of the event on Sunday. The victims were identified as 89-year-old Kishore Diwan, 85-year-old Asha Diwan, 86-year-old Shailesh Diwan, and 84-year-old Geeta Diwan. They were traveling from Buffalo to Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold in Marshall County in a 2009 model green Toyota Camry with a New York license plate (EKW2611). The Sheriff’s Department reported that all four individuals died in a vehicle accident. The bodies and the car were found at the bottom of a steep slope on Big Wheeling Creek Road at approximately 9:30 PM on Saturday. Rescue teams were on the scene for around five hours. Sheriff Doherty expressed his deepest sympathies to the families of the deceased and stated that more detailed information would be released following the conclusion of the investigation. The family was last seen on July 29th at a Burger King restaurant in Pennsylvania. The family was reportedly heading to Mountsville, West Virginia, by way of Pittsburgh. Police units from Marshall and Ohio County conducted searches in the neighboring areas. Information regarding the vehicle was entered into the National Crime Information Center, and a missing person’s report was filed in Buffalo. The Council of Heritage and Arts of India (CHAI), a voluntary organization located in Williamsville, New York, contributed to the search efforts. Sibu Nair, the president of CHAI, expressed concern.