Indian-origin man charged with murdering woman

An Indian-origin man was Wednesday charged with the murder of a Singaporean student at a hotel in the Australian city of Brisbane.

Senthill Kumar Arumugam, 31, is accused of stabbing to death 27-year-old Meena Narayanan, also of Indian origin, at a hotel near Garden City shopping centre in the city, the Brisbane Times reported.

Police found her body in a room at the hotel about 12.30 a.m. Tuesday, following frantic triple-0 calls from other guests who heard her screams.

Police said horrific stab wounds were inflicted on the student's stomach in one of the most brutal attacks seen. Arumugam was arrested shortly thereafter.

Narayanan was living in Brisbane while studying at Queensland University of Technology (QUT).

The accused had flown to Australia from South Africa and he and the victim were allegedly due to have an arranged marriage. They had only met Monday night.

Narayanan's brother arrived in Brisbane late Tuesday night.

Arumugam has been remanded in custody while the police were expected to conduct the post-mortem Wednesday.

Hearing of the case at the Brisbane Magistrates Court is scheduled for May 5.