Killing of Geetha Angara
Geetha Angara case – simplified version
On February 8, 2005, Geetha Angara, a 43-year-old chemist, was at the Passaic Valley Water Commission plant in Totowa, New Jersey. She went to the water tanks to take samples and was last seen around 10:30 a.m. carrying a clipboard, a two-way radio, and a beaker. She left a sandwich on her desk, planning to eat it later.
On February 9, after the tanks were drained, Angara’s body was found in a water tank. Investigators found a slightly open access panel, broken glass, and items Angara carried in the water below the panel. An autopsy showed bruises on her neck, waist, and elbows from a struggle, but the cause of death was drowning. Police ruled the case a homicide, believing she was killed intentionally by someone at the plant. Access to the plant was tightly controlled, so they suspected one of the workers.
Over the next months, detectives interviewed all coworkers and narrowed the possible suspects to eight men, later down to three. Despite extensive investigation, the case went cold by 2006 and no arrests were made. Some investigators considered that the death might have been accidental, noting that extremely cold water can cause injuries that resemble strangulation. The panel over the tank (and why it was left open) was central to this theory, but it could not be proven. The scene had few clues: the tank was dark, the water was cold, and the area lacked cameras in the basement.
In 2007, Angara’s family asked the state Attorney General to review the case, but no new leads emerged. The PVWC later improved security, including armed guards at the plant. The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit in 2007, which was settled through mediation after two years.
Geetha Angara was born in 1961 in Chennai, India. She earned degrees in chemistry and moved to the United States in 1984, where she earned a Ph.D. in organic chemistry. She married and had three children, and began working for the PVWC in 1992. She helped lead a move to an ozone-based water purification process and was proud of her work, though it caused tension with some coworkers.
The case remains unresolved. In later years, some officials and Angara’s family continued to seek new reviews, but no definitive answers have emerged. Geetha Angara’s daughter has disputed the idea that her mother’s death was an accident.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 06:03 (CET).