A successful cancer research scientist and mother-of-two was murdered and her body dumped in a creek while on her daily run in Texas this past weekend.
Sarmistha Sen, 43, of Plano, was found dead near a creek at Legacy Drive and Marchman Way Saturday morning less than two hours after she went out on her regular run along the Chisholm Trail. A passerby found the victim’s body about 20 to 25 feet below the trail near the creek at around 7 a.m.
Sen’s cause of death has not been released, but police confirmed it is being investigated as a homicide.
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Police said around the same time as her murder, a home was broken into nearby on the 3400 block of Michael Drive. Plano police have named a 29-year-old burglary suspect Bakari Moncrief as a person of interest in the slaying. Moncrief, an out-of-state resident allegedly visiting relatives in Plano, was arrested for a burglary Saturday morning at a property near where Sen’s body was discovered.
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Plano Police Department public information officer David Tilley said no charges have been filed on Mr. Moncrief related to the murder, but he is considered a person of interest and is in the Collin County Jail on burglary charges. Moncrief is being held on an unusally high $1 million bond for the burglary charge. There were no records of Moncrief having a criminal history.
It is not clear if Sen and Moncrief have any prior association, but a a CaringBridge site set up by the victim’s family said ‘a stranger brutally killed her for no apparent reason.’
Police noted that the ‘close proximities and very close time frames’ of the cases have raised suspicions about Moncrief’s possible involvement in Sen’s death. Tilley said:
‘Due to the fact that we had these close proximities and very close time frames of two offenses occurring, this individual became a person of interest in this murder investigation. Obviously, we’re wanting to collect evidence to either determine whether he is or he is not the person responsible for this.’
Local residents rallied around Sen’s devastated family following the brutal attack, leaving dozens of pairs of running shoes in tribute to avid runner near the site of her death. Neighbors have also planned a memorial run in her honor in the local area for next Saturday morning.
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Sen grew up in Sindri, India, and moved to Bangalore to study before moving to Plano in 2004, according to a CaringBridge page set up by her family. She studied at UT Dallas and University of Birmingham, Alabama. She worked on cancer research for most of her career, most recently as a clinical research manager at U.T. Southwestern Medical Center. The page reads:
Sarmistha lived a free and fearless life inspiring many with her infectious energy and carefree smile. Sarmistha was an avid runner, gardener and a great cook. She practiced healthy mindful living and she could cook extremely healthy food that tasted amazingly good. She was a trained singer of Indian classical music and loved to teach and perform music. She was passionate about cancer care and was a lifelong supporter of cancer research.
She leaves behind her husband Arindam Roy, two young sons aged six and twelve, and a three-month old puppy named Milly.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family and loved ones.
