California woman killed by stalker after years of terror

This story originally appeared on KCRA.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The woman brutally slain outside of a Panera by a long-time stalker has been identified Thursday, according to the Sacramento County coroner.

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Shalini Thakur, 38, was getting dropped off at work in the shopping plaza along Howe Avenue and Northrop Avenue when 22-year-old Rohit Rohit approached her and confronted her, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said. Thakur tried to run away, but Rohit shot her multiple times.

After Thakur fell to the ground, the sheriff’s office said Rohit shot Thakur in the head at close range. He fled but then ultimately killed himself during a standoff with Sacramento deputies along eastbound Highway 50 at Watt Avenue.

Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said deputies were able to track down Rohit within seven minutes using Flock’s camera system. Multiple witnesses who were there during the attack also helped search for Rohit, who the sheriff’s office described as a “cold-blooded killer” based on the nature of how Thakur was executed.

Since her killing, KCRA 3 has obtained a restraining order that Thakur filed, which details roughly a year of stalking, harassment, and threats Rohit made. According to the filing, the alleged stalking began around September 2025 and had “progressively escalated in frequency and severity.”

Thakur said she knew Rohit through DoorDash pickups from her workplace. His behavior worsened over time, which would ultimately lead to him making the threat to kill both Thakur and himself, the order shows.

On April 23, Rohit allegedly parked outside Thakur’s home for hours to wait to speak with her, a habit she referred to as a “daily occurrence.” The document lists instances such as Rohit deflating Thakur’s tires—a written declaration from Thakur states he would later admit to her that he did this—and hiding an Apple AirTag under her car’s hood to track her location.

Rohit would also try to force her into marriage and prevent her from socializing with other people, according to the restraining order.

A Wednesday news release from the sheriff’s office stated that deputies were concerned about Rohit’s actions and urged Thakur to file a restraining order, of which she eventually did. Officials served Rohit the notice on May 19.

The sheriff’s office identified Rohit and also spoke of his concerning behavior. The agency cited instances of Rohit making a copy of Thakur’s apartment key to let himself inside while she was sleeping, as well as another time when he violated the restraining order in late July, when he dropped off grocery store items at her front door.

“She called in, reported it. So deputies actually went out there,” Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Lt. Amar Gandhi said. “They took a report. There was follow-up done after that from our detectives.”

Gandhi said investigators believed Rohit was responsible and determined that he was “PC arrestable,” meaning they had probable cause to take him into custody.

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“Was there probable cause that this was from Rohit?” KCRA 3’s Denzen Cortez asked.

“Yeah, correct. So that’s what we believe,” Gandhi responded.

Gandhi said detectives made at least two in-person attempts to locate Rohit at his home and other locations he was known to frequent. Those attempts were unsuccessful.

“If we made contact with him, yeah, I am certain there would have been an arrest,” Gandhi said. “But again, there was no contact made.”

Gandhi said investigators could arrest Rohit for the suspected misdemeanor violation even though it had not occurred in their presence. He said the investigation remained pending as detectives handled other cases and continued their follow-up.

“There’s not going to be a massive, large-scale manhunt for this person,” Gandhi said. “But there is follow-up. There is stuff done.”

The Sheriff’s Office described the reported violation as a lower-level misdemeanor within the criminal justice system. Gandhi said Rohit had no known criminal history and that this appeared to be his first suspected restraining-order violation. A spokesperson for DHS said Rohit was from India and entered the United States through Arizona in 2023. He was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol and released by the Biden administration, according to the spokesperson. The exact details around his immigration status were not immediately clear as of Friday.

Federal court records online showed his case was pending. The records showed no appeal had been received for his case and there were no hearings scheduled.

The Sheriff’s Office did not classify the matter as domestic violence because investigators had no information showing Thakur and Rohit had been involved romantically. Gandhi said Thakur had described them as friends, placing the matter under civil harassment.

However, Gandhi said that classification did not prevent deputies from arresting Rohit for allegedly violating the order.