The family of Yuan Xiaopeng, a Syracuse University student found dead on Sept 30, thanked the public for its concern and urged students not to spread rumors about Yuan or of the circumstances of his death.

The family made the statement on Tuesday through the university's Chinese Students and Scholars Association.

The Chinese Consulate General in New York said it would like the case solved expeditiously and wants to see that “legitimate rights and interests of local Chinese students are not infringed”.

The Syracuse police have called the slaying an apparent homicide.

Yuan also posted on Weibo an August 2015 letter from Syracuse University that indicated he had been expelled from the university but allowed to return on disciplinary probation. The letter did not say why Yuan was on probation, and university officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.