From SacBee.com: Navi Kaur, granddaughter of shooting victim Surinder Singh, said "our grandfather wore his turban proudly. Our community will continue to wear their turbans proudly... . It is not acceptable to target anyone based on their appearance, religion or color of their skin." Read more . |
Elk Grove, Calif. residents of multiple faiths will come together for a prayer vigil this Friday at the intersection of East Stockton Boulevard and Geneva Point Drive, where two elderly Sikh friends were gunned down during their routine afternoon walk last Friday afternoon.
Though police are still seeking suspects in the shooting, Elk Grove Police Chief Robert Lehner issued a statement the day after the attack, indicating that it could be a hate or bias motivated crime.
“We have no evidence to indicate there was a hate or bias motivation for this crime; however, the obvious Sikh appearance of the men, including the traditional Dastar headwear and lack of any other apparent motive, increasingly raise that possibility,” the statement read. “The City of Elk Grove is a marvelously diverse community and the possibility that one of our valued community groups might have been targeted because of their national origin or religion is of grave concern.” The FBI is working with Elk Grove police in the event the shootings are found to be hate crimes, which is a federal civil rights violation.
Community response in this city just south of Sacramento runs the gamut from fear, anger, shock and sorrow, according to news reports. The shots to 67-year-old Surinder Singh proved fatal on that East Stockton Boulevard sidewalk and his friend, 78-year-old Gurmej Atwal, remains in critical condition.
From SacBee.com: Darshan Singh Mundy, a Sikh civil rights leader, attends a news conference with other leaders at a West Sacramento Sikh temple. Read more . |
Organizations have stepped in. Sacramento Valley office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SV), leaders of the Sikh community, the Interfaith Service Bureau and community leaders held a press conference Monday to publicly address the shooting. CAIR-SV offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the shooter or shooters. In the past five days, that sum has grown to $42,000 with donations from local residents, the Sikh and Jewish communities.
Elk Grove Mayor Steve Detrick and the Elk Grove police are meeting with civic leaders and the Sikh community to organize a response and address concerns. The Sacramento Regional Coalition for Tolerance has also been an active community supporter.
The public is invited to the prayer vigil at 6 p.m. on Friday. Singh’s funeral will be held at the North Sacramento Funeral Home, 725 El Camino Ave. at 10 a.m.