Family of OpenAI whistleblower Suchir Balaji demand FBI investigate death
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Parents believe San Francisco police lack ability to conduct thorough investigation into multifaceted case. Poornima Ramarao greeted everyone with a smile as they offered condolences for the death of her son, Suchir Balaji, a former OpenAI researcher and whistleblower who was found dead in his San Francisco apartment on 26 November.
“I am not grieving,” she told a small group of friends at a vigil held for Balaji in Milpitas, California, a city about 50 miles (80km) south-east of San Francisco. “I have become numb.”. A few moments later, tears began rolling down her cheeks as she talked about losing her only son.
Balaji’s parents have questioned the circumstances of their son’s death and refuse to believe that he died by suicide, as ruled by the office of the chief medical examiner. They have demanded an FBI investigation into his death. The demand, Ramarao said, stems from their belief that the San Francisco police department lacks the ability to conduct a thorough investigation into a case that includes issues such as cybersecurity and whistleblower protection.
Police found Balaji dead in his apartment on 26 November after Ramarao had failed to get in touch with her son for three days. She filed a missing person complaint where she lives in Union City, about 40 miles from San Francisco. Police there contacted San Francisco authorities.
