A Community in Mourning - The Murder of Dr. Gwen Amsrala

Dr. Gwen Amsrala was a brilliant young doctor doing her residency in the UNLV Medical School’s internal medicine program. In a horrifying turn of events, her husband whom she’d been with for nearly half her life, Shiva Gummi, cut short her brilliant career, ending her life in a violent fit of rage, jealousy, and probably more than a little bit of insecurity. 

We will also be talking about Jake Freeman, a Las Vegas metropolitan police officer, who terrorized his wife for several months after their divorce was finalized. He stalked her online and in person incessantly until finally he was arrested on New Year's Eve. The conclusion of his story shocked the Las Vegas Valley community. 

[Shaun] Hi and welcome to Sins and Survivors, a Las Vegas true crime podcast, where we focus on cases that deal with domestic violence. I’m your host, Shaun, and with me as always, is the one and only John.

[John] 

I … am the only John in the room.

[Shaun] 

This case today is a little unusual compared to the other cases we’ve discussed on Sins and Survivors so far this season. In other episodes, there have been some warning signs or quotes from family and friends, or even the victims themselves, that paint a clear picture of the violence or toxicity of their relationships. 

But for Dr. Gwen Amsrala, we don’t seem to have all of those details; at least not yet. 

So do you want to start us off? 

[John] 

Sure. This week, as you said, we’ll be talking about a bright and successful 2022 MD graduate of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV named Gwendoline (Gren) Amsrala. We’ll also be talking about the distinction that you'll sometimes see about whether or not someone is a Domestic Abuser. As you might expect, a person doesn't need to have been determined to be a domestic abuser in a court of law to BE a domestic abuser. Those two things aren't even related.

[Shaun]

We’ll also touch on the idea of red flags in relationships and which patterns of behavior constitute controlling behavior and which ones can easily progress into abusive behavior. 

As I mentioned, as of now we don’t have a lot of information on the specifics of Gwen’s marriage to Shiva Gummi, or a sense of how often these issues may have come up in their relationship or what red flags there might have been, but there are a few we can certainly identify.

But before we get into all of that, let’s talk about Gwen. 

[John] 

Gwen Amsrala, known as Nikki to her family, was born in 1994 in Hyderabad, India, and was the  only child of Nancy Palatty and Kiran David Amsrala. Her cousin Peter has shared that when she was born, a nurse said to her mother Nancy that Gwen looked like a laddu. A “laddu” is a very popular and tasty round little Indian sweet treat. 

As a child, she attended a catholic school that was run by her parents, and she started Kindergarten quite early at the age of 3 (typically kids start kindergarten at the age of 4 or 5).

[Shaun]

Gwen and her parents immigrated to the United States (specifically to Reno, NV) when Gwen was 13 years old - around 7th or 8th grade - but according to her mom, she adjusted quickly to life in America. She said that it seemed like Gwen felt like she belonged here in the US.

She graduated from McQueen High School, which is on the west side of Reno, in 2011. After high school, she briefly returned to India to study computers but came back to the United States in 2013. 

[John] 

Gwen’s dream was, from a very young age, to become a doctor, and she started making that dream a reality by attending the University of Nevada, Reno. Her eventual goal was to work with terminally ill patients. 

She graduated in 2017 from UNR with a degree in neuroscience. She was accepted to the UNLV Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine and graduated with her MD degree in 2022

[Shaun]

She was justifiably extremely proud of her accomplishment in getting her MD degree. For her residency, as luck would have it, she ended up matching a program at UNLV, the Internal Medicine internship, and she began that internship shortly after.

At that same time, Gwen’s mother's health was deteriorating, so she took on the responsibility of caring for her ailing mother.

[John] 

Gwen and Shiva had been together since she was 15 and he was 19, so Gwen would have been in high school when they started dating. 

Some of the things we’ve found out in reading about Gwen are that she had a great (and maybe a little sarcastic) sense of humor, enjoyed dancing, playing the guitar (though never in public), swimming, and was seemingly universally loved and admired by those around her. She was a selfless person who always had a stack of bills on hand to give out to any homeless people she came across. Thats just the type of person she was.

[Shaun]

Her devastated co-workers all talked about how amazing she was and what a pleasure it was to work with her. One of her co-residents said, “I think anyone that has worked with her whenever you had a shift with her you knew it was going to be a great shift because she was a very very competent provider, and you knew she had your back when she was alongside you.”

She also had a chocolate lab named Arya who was described as being the love of her life.

[John] 

I can relate to that.

As for her husband Shiva, we know some things, but not that much. He graduated from the College of Southern Nevada in 2021 with a degree in Aviation Technology intending to become a professional pilot. He eventually worked as a flight instructor with the North Las Vegas-based West Air Flight Training.

Gummi seemed to be on a good track with gainful employment. In early to mid-2022 it was becoming obvious there was a looming pilot shortage, so competent and skillful pilots could very much write their tickets in the aviation industry.

[Shaun]

In May of 2022, Gummi was interviewed by the local Fox Affiliate here in Las Vegas, Fox 5 about the pilot shortage as an expert since he was an instructor. It's hard to believe that 11 months later he’d be calling 911 explaining how he had just killed his wife.

[John] 

I know that of course all suspects are considered innocent until they’re proven guilty in a court of law, but just like some of the other cases we’ve covered, it's very difficult to think of Shiva as being innocent… given that he was found in bed with his wife with the murder weapon in his hands.

[Shaun] Sometime in mid-2022, Dr. Gwen Amsrala’s mother, Nancy, moved in with the couple. She moved from Reno because she has a terminal illness and is partially deaf, and Dr. Amsrala became her caretaker. 

Now according to Nancy, she never witnessed any violence between the couple and they never argued in front of her. 

On April 13, 2023, Gwen celebrated the end of her first year of residency with her work colleagues. According to testimony Nancy gave during the preliminary hearing, Gwen ended up spending the night at a friend’s house because the friend had been drinking and Gwen said she was worried about the friend. 

Nancy said that the next morning Shiva asked Gwen about her spending the night at this friend’s house. Nancy told police that she was there when Shiva was asking Gwen about the incident and that she herself was also asking what had happened. According to Nancy, Shiva was QUOTE “upset with Gwendoline” UNQUOTE for staying at this friend’s house. 

[John]

We don’t have any details at this time as to what Dr. Amsrala and Shiva did during the day on April 14th 2023. It was a Friday, so presumably, Shiva and Gwen both went to work.  

According to Nancy, Gwen returned home the night of April 14th, around 9 p.m., after she had dinner with some of her co-workers. Nancy said Shiva was also out with friends that night and got home around 11 p.m. 

After they got home, they went to bed. 

The next morning was Saturday, April 15, and Nancy woke up and found it odd that Gwen hadn’t come into her room before she left for work. Based on her statements, we get the impression that Nancy spent most of the early morning in her bedroom and didn’t notice anything odd around the house. She assumed Gwen had gone to work. 

[Shaun[

Around 8:15 in the morning, Shiva makes a call to 911. He tells the operator that about 5 hours ago – so around 3 am –he had stabbed himself in multiple places all over his body, intentionally. He states that he had locked himself inside the bedroom. 

He made the very chilling statement, QUOTE  “I want to die, but I’m not dying.” UNQUOTE

The 911 operator then asked where Shiva’s wife was, and he said, next to me. 

The operator asked if the wife could help him with his wounds, and help him stop the bleeding, and he said, she’s dead.

[John]

The police arrived at the house, and Nancy let them in, still somehow having no idea why the police were there or who had called them. 

The police broke down the door to the main bedroom in the house and they found Gwen and Shiva lying on a mattress on the floor. Gwen was covered in blankets with multiple injuries to her arms, abdomen, and throat.

She was pronounced dead at the scene. 

Shiva was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Shiva’s injuries, according to the police, all appeared to be self-inflicted. He had injuries to his throat, left side, abdomen, left inner thigh, and right arm. 

The police collected a knife from beside the mattress that had a bent blade.  According to police, the knife matched a set of kitchen knives in a knife block in the kitchen – one of which was missing. According to court records, other evidence the prosecution has collected includes Shiva’s cell phone, and the audio, video, and photos on that phone.

We’ll have to wait for the trial to learn more about what they found on the phone.

[Shaun]

Shiva underwent surgery at the hospital and was arrested and booked in absentia on one count of murder. He was held without bail. Shiva appeared in court several days later, in a wheelchair and handcuffs and with a large scar on his neck.

Shiva has pleaded not guilty to the charge. 

I have no idea what his defense might be or where this case will go. I did read that the police noted Shiva was suicidal -- which is evident due to the circumstances of the crime, right? He was trying to kill himself. But without context, I’m not sure if Shiva had been feeling suicidal for some time leading up to the crime.

REMINDER - the national number for help with suicide or mental health crises is 988. 

According to court records, the State declined to seek the death penalty for Shiva. Also, Shiva agreed to participate in two settlement conferences held but the case is scheduled to proceed to trial. This indicates to me that there wasn’t a deal on the table that Shiva wanted to accept. 

The trial is set to begin on April 15, 2024, which will be exactly one year from the date of Dr. Gwen Amsrala’s murder. 

[John]

Media and cameras have been approved to be in the courtroom for the trial, so when that begins in a few months, we’ll be able to provide very detailed updates. Shiva is currently being held at the Clark County Detention Center, awaiting trial. 

As a result of his own actions, Shiva suffered multiple serious injuries and according to his attorney, will require extensive rehabilitation. 

Gwen’s funeral was held on April 27, 2023, at a church here in Las Vegas. Peter Francis, Gwen’s cousin, gave a beautiful eulogy, sharing what we already know to be true - QUOTE “Her absence leaves us a profound void in our lives” UNQUOTE

The whole funeral service is available on Youtube, and we’ll be sure to share that in the show notes.

[Shaun]

Her colleagues at the UNLV Medical School and in her residency also held a memorial for her and made this public statement: 

QUOTE Our residency was shocked to learn of the passing of our beloved intern, Dr. Gwendoline Amsrala. Gwen was a graduate of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV, and rotated with our program as a medical student and stayed on as a resident.  She was taken tragically and suddenly from us, and the world has lost an amazing physician who would have changed the lives of countless patients. Our program misses her infectious smile, positive energy, and the love she had for her work family. We mourn the passing of our dear friend.”  UNQUOTE

A faculty member at UNLV assisted the family in setting up the GoFundMe to help with expenses and wrote QUOTE “She was taken tragically and suddenly from us, before she was destined to fulfill a rich and meaningful career dedicated to serving her future patients” 

AND QUOTE  “For those that knew her intimately, we will always remember her wonderful sense of humor, the strength of spirit, leadership, and charming smile.” - UNQUOTE 

The UNLV Medical School also started a memorial scholarship in her name, and while the GoFundMe is closed, you can still contribute to the scholarship program. 

“No matter what was going on throughout the day, you can always count on her to crack a joke here and there," said Omar Sanyurah, a Medical Resident of Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine.

“Gwen was a fierce advocate for all of us,” Dr. Tammera Flores “which is why I for one would like to see justice served to the person who stole her from us in this very tragic, violent and criminal way.”

[John]

A private memorial was also held for Gwen in her hometown of Reno. 

One week after Gwen was killed, Tabatha Tozzi was also shot and killed – on April 22, 2023. We discussed Tabatha’s case in Episode 4. 

The two had very different careers but they both were essentially the same age, Tabatha was only 2 years younger than Gwen. Both of them were dog moms too. 

[Shaun]

And the “Motive” or inciting incident leading to their murders was very much the same – their partner being upset after they had spent a night out. 

And I think Gwen’s murder highlights even further that domestic violence isn’t bound by profession, education level, or household income. Batterers and victims come from all walks of life. 

These stories are horrible and tragic and one of the things it made me want to talk about is some of the red flags for domestic violence. We don't have any record of the police ever being called to Shiva and Gwen’s home or reports from neighbors of loud arguments, but it feels very likely that there was a pattern of abusive behavior here, leading up to Gwen’s murder.

[John]

In a given relationship, the fact that the police have never been called and a court has never officially labeled someone a domestic abuser doesn't mean that a person is not exhibiting these behaviors. 

Abusive behavior often starts with much more subtle patterns of controlling behavior and then escalates.

Controlling behaviors include 

• Tech abuse like tracking, or demanding that a partner allow access to photos and text messages (we touched a bit on this in our last tech corner episode)
• Jealousy, especially extreme jealousy that is sometimes called ‘morbid jealousy’: 
  • This can become problematic and abusive very quickly. 
  • Some examples of jealous behavior are
    • When your partner accuses you of having affairs, or makes accusations about you based on how you’re dressed. 
    • Putting expectations on you when you do go out, such as needing to text immediately back or send photos to prove who you’re with, or forbidding you to be out with friends of the opposite sex. 
• Another behavior to look out for is being interrogated after you spend a night out with your friends. 

[Shaun]

One terrifying thing about that level of jealousy is that it can be a key indicator of a relationship ending in murder. According to a 2017 research study on the murder and attempted murders of women by their partners, 79% of the time, extreme jealousy was present in the relationship– the kind of jealousy where your boyfriend is saying “If I can't have you, then no one can.”

So we cannot express enough what a red flag that type of behavior is. 

…….. Commercial Break ….. Take a breath

This is a perfect segway to us noting that January is Stalking Awareness Month. Stalking is a form of abusive behavior that can and often does escalate to violence. Like domestic violence, stalking is a crime of power and control. It is a pattern of behaviors which on their own MIGHT seem innocuous, but taken together in a pattern can lead to anxiety, fear , and can escalate to violence.

[John]

Some examples of stalking behavior are things like

• Repeated calls including calls with hang ups
• Following and/or showing up where someone is
• The sending of unwanted gifts, letters, texts, emails
• Damage to property
• Monitoring of phone calls or computer use
• Use of technology to track location
• “Drive bys”
• Verbal threats of violence to you or even to themselves
• Using other people to communicate with you

[Shaun]

If you are being stalked, it’s not your fault. You should take steps to preserve your safety like telling people what’s going on- like maybe the HR department at your work, or your neighbors or parents of your kid’s friends, so they don’t give out information to your stalker – like where you are or your new phone number. It happens.

Also do what you can to preserve texts or emails or to write down incidents in case you ever want to get an order of protection. Take your stalker’s threats seriously, And be aware that your stalker might use threats of suicide to get you to continue staying in contact with them.

[John]

You know yourself best so do not hesitate to call 911 if you need to

For support you can call your local DV hotline or the national hotline to talk with an advocate who can help you with safety planning and filing a protection order. 

We’ll provide those resources in our show notes. 

[Shaun]

Before we bring up this next case… I want to mention that it also encompasses domestic violence, stalking, and suicide, so we’ll just take a moment to include a trigger warning for all of those topics.

This story occurred New Year’s weekend 2024, just a couple weeks ago - 6-year veteran of the Las Vegas Metro Police force, domestic abuser, and stalker Jake Freeman was arrested after stalking and terrorizing his ex-wife.

[John]

We don't know much about the victim, Freeman’s wife, which is probably for the best. The couple had no children, however, which again is most assuredly for the best in this case.

Freeman was 31 years old, born in 1992 (which btw makes me feel very old because that's when I graduated college) He joined Metro in 2017 and was a member of the community policing division in the Summerlin Area Command. Summerlin, for those who aren't from Las Vegas, is a strategically planned community on the west side of the Las Vegas Valley.

There are some pretty swanky areas in Summerlin, and it is actually the area I lived in when I first moved to Las Vegas in 2011

[Shaun]

Freeman's ex-wife described him to police as QUOTE "very persistent, relentless, and determined when he wants something" and said he QUOTE "is aggressive and mean when he drinks." UNQUOTE

According to the arrest report, she also said her desire for a divorce stemmed from Freeman's past physical abuse.

It was also reported that Freeman was having and expressing suicidal thoughts saying things like QUOTE “I don't have anything left to live for" and QUOTE "Things are not good. I should just end it." UNQUOTE

Leading up to the incident on December 31, 2023, his ex-wife has stated that due to verbal and physical violence, she divorced him in October of 2023. 

[John]

One example of his abusive terrorizing behavior occurred after a December 2nd, 2023 Christmas party in which Freeman was following his then-wife home, called and got her to pull over, and walked up to the window of her car and dropped his Glock service weapon inside and told her to “don't give me fucking attitude.” She told the police the night of his arrest that this “freaked her out”.

Which makes sense.

[Shaun]

Very early in the morning on December 31, 2023 Freeman showed up at his ex-wife’s parent’s house demanding to talk to her. When they didn't let him in, he started pounding on the doors and windows. 

His ex-wife was terrified and hid in a closet until the police showed up. 

Freeman claimed that he drove to her parents' house after seeing her post on social media that she was going to a Post Malone concert. He wanted to know who she was going with, and if it was somebody from his work. He stated he believed she was seeing someone from his work and he had driven 30 minutes to her parents’ house to see if he could catch them together. 

He was arrested and charged with several felonies including aggravated stalking and attempted home invasion. 

[John]

According to the arrest report, Freeman was arrested at 4:38 AM. He was released after he posted bail and after a mandatory 12-hour hold. 

Henderson police have stated that all inmates undergo medical and mental health screenings and Freeman did as well. 

Freeman was immediately suspended from the police force but was allowed to retain his firearms, which is probably due to the quick nature of what happened, it being over a weekend, and him being a police officer. 

In retrospect though, seems like the wrong call. Especially if you think about what MIGHT have happened if he had decided to pay another visit to his ex and her parents. Very scary.

[Shaun]

He was released at 5 pm on December 31st. At 6:39 p.m., the Henderson police were called to his residence and discovered Jake Freeman dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, an apparent suicide. 

[John]

You can't help but see the parallels between some of the cases we’ve covered like Phoukeo Dej-Oudom where an ex engaged in violence and stalking. In that case, it resulted in family annihilation, whereas in this case, it resulted in a man taking his own life. When I read this whole string of incidents, I thought that this could just as easily have been a story about a murder-suicide and that his ex-wife and her parents are lucky to be alive.

[Shaun]

And again we see the elements of this toxic jealousy, where Jake Freeman has become obsessed with finding out who his ex-wife is spending time with. He was also obviously stalking her social media. 

And, again, as we pointed out with Dr. Amsrala -- the perpetrators, victims, and survivors of violence come from all walks of life -- even law enforcement. 

This story shocked a lot of people locally, as now we have a fuller picture and more of the details. At first, we heard the story about an officer being arrested for aggravated stalking, when the arrest was made early in the day on December 31. However, his suicide was not confirmed and made public until January 2, so that conclusion to the story was disturbing. 

[John]

We are grateful that Freeman’s wife and parents weren't harmed (physically anyway), and that the police did respond to their call and took Freeman into custody.

Regardless of who your stalker is or what they do to work, do not hesitate to contact domestic violence advocates or call 911 to get the help you need. (we’ll provide those resources)

Next week, we have a story of a victim of stalking who was unable to get her stalker to leave her alone or to get the help she needed from law enforcement, so she turned to Reddit for some advice. 

We are looking forward to sharing that with all of you. 

Thanks again for listening to another episode of Sins & Survivors… now that you’ve finished go ahead and share this episode with a friend because 

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