I wonder if the request to show up at the Seattle office was some kind of working with law enforcement. Evidently he planned to flee to India instead of take the meeting. He seems to have known there was risk to him in that meeting.
Could well be he was tipped off about the purpose of the meeting...
Most fully remote companies won't demand an in person meeting unless it's something of a disciplinary nature anyway. Merely a message saying "Your employer requires you to appear at X time at Y place" would be a red flag for many.
The message would say "is it easier to discuss this next to a whiteboard?" If it were friendly...
