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An Indian engineer was killed and two others injured in Kansas, USA, after an American man opened fire on them, allegedly yelling "get out of my country". The local police have dubbed the incident a "possible hate crime".
The deceased has been identified as Srinivas Kunchubhotla, a 32-year-old employee at the Garmin headquarters in Olathe. His colleague, Alok Madasani was injured in the attack.
While condemning the attack, the US government assured the Indian Embassy in USA that a thorough investigation will be carried out.
FBI Joins Investigation
"The FBI is investigating to determine if the shooting of Kuchibhotla, was a bias-motivated hate crime in violation of the victim's civil rights," Eric Jackson, special agent in charge of the FBI's Kansas City office, told reporters at a news conference.
Sushma Swaraj Offers Help
India’s External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj took to Twitter to extend her condolences and offer assistance to the family of the victims. She said she had spoken to the Indian Ambassador in the US, Navtej Sarna, who informed her that Alok had been discharged from the hospital.
All arrangements to transport Kuchibhotla’s mortal remains to Hyderabad were being made, she added.
Former US Ambassador to India Richard Verma also condemned the attack.
Accused Arrested Five Hours Later
The accused, Adam Purinton, was arrested on Thursday morning, five hours after the incident.
Purinton, a navy veteran, reportedly told a bartender in Missouri, where he was hiding, that he had killed two Middle Eastern persons. The Indian Embassy has swung into action and two senior officials of the Indian Consulate in Houston have been sent to Kansas to assist the victims’ families.
The accused has been charged with premeditated first-degree murder and his bond has been set at USD 2 million.
An American present at the shooting, Ian Grillot, who attempted to intervene and stop Purinton, was also injured.
Condolences Pour In
According to Garmin, Kuchibhotla and Madasani worked in the company's aviation systems.
"We're saddened that two Garmin associates were involved in last night's (Wednesday night) incident, and we express our condolences to the family and friends of our co-workers involved. Garmin will have grievance counsellors on site and available for its associates today and tomorrow," Garmin said in a statement.
The alleged hate crime has sent shock waves among Indian-Americans and the Indian community across the United States.
We are praying for a speedy recovery for the injured. We call upon the US Department of Justice and local law enforcement to investigate this murder as what it is, a hate crime. Anything less will be an injustice to the victims and their families.Jay Kansara, director of Government Relations, Hindu American Foundation
A GoFundMe page has also been set up to help raise funds for sending Kuchibhotla's body to India.
The shooting incident comes at a time when hate crimes and acts of bigotry have risen notably during the recent months in America.
A Jewish cemetery was vandalised in St Louis, Missouri last week and the offices of Jewish civil society organisations have received bomb threats. A man was removed from a Chicago-Houston flight after levelling racist taunts at Pakistani and Indian passengers.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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