A UC Santa Barbara doctoral student was found dead in the Eastern Sierra this week after his family reported him missing during a hiking trip, according to reports and university records.
Vikram Mubayi, a chemical engineering Ph.D. candidate, was found Monday in the Big Pine Lakes area of Inyo National Forest, according to the student newspaper Daily Nexus. The search effort involved Inyo County search and rescue personnel and the California Highway Patrol.
Mubayi last contacted his family at about 8:37 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, according to a Reddit post written by a person claiming to be one of his siblings seeking information about his whereabouts. The post said Mubayi had been hiking near Agassiz Col, that his vehicle remained at the trailhead, and that he had been carrying a Garmin satellite device…