New York: In yet another violent attack on US citizens of Indian-origin, a Sikh man was on Friday shot at in Kent city by unidentified and masked six-foot-tall white man, local media reported.
According to the Seattle Times, the 39-year-old victim, identified as Deep Rai, was working on his vehicle outside his home in the city of Kent in the Washington state on Friday when he was approached by a stranger, who walked up to the driveway, the Seattle Times reported.
Kent police said an argument broke out between the two men, with the victim saying the suspect made statements to the effect of "go back to your own country." The unidentified man then shot him in the arm.
The victim described the shooter as a six-foot-tall white man, wearing a mask covering the lower half of his face.
Kent police have launched an investigation into the case and reached out to the FBI and other law enforcement agencies, the report said.
"We're early on in our investigation," Thomas said.
Kent Police Commander Jarod Kasner said the incident is getting attention from the Sikh community and others.
"With recent unrest and concern throughout the nation this can get people emotionally involved, especially when (the crime) is directed at a person for how they live, how they look," Kasner said.
The incident is the latest in a series of troubling cases where members of the Indian community have been targeted in apparent hate crimes.
On Thursday night an Indian businessman was shot dead outside his home in Lancaster, South Carolina. Harnish Patel (43), the owner of a convenience store in Lancaster County, South Carolina, was found dead of gunshot wounds in the front yard of his home.
Patel’s death comes close on the heels of the shooting in Kansas of a 32-year-old Indian engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla, who was killed when 51-year-old US Navy veteran Adam Purinton opened fire at him and his friend Alok Madasani at a bar before yelling “get out of my country.”
The attacks sent shockwaves across the Indian-American community with people expressing concerns over their safety in an enviornment of xenophobic and racist rhetoric in the country.
Post Comments
| Quick links