Washington/ New Delhi: Four members of a Sikh family, including three women, were shot dead at their home in Cincinnati in US on Sunday. One of them was an “Indian national on a visit to the US while others were persons of Indian origin”, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted. It was “not a hate crime”, she said.
The victims have been identified as Hakikat Singh Panag, 59, his wife, Paramjit Kaur, 62, their daughter, Shalinder Kaur, 39, and his sister-in-law, Amarjit Kaur, 58.
They were found dead at their home in West Chester apartment complex in Cincinnati’s Lakefront on Sunday evening. All four of them died of “apparent gunshot wounds,” West Chester Township Police Chief Joel Herzog told reporters.
A family member called 911 after he found the bodies at the apartment in suburban Ohio community, Mr Herzog said. “My wife and three other family members were on the ground and bleeding… they’re bleeding from the head,” a man said on the 911 call released by the police. “No one’s talking, no one’s talking,” he shouted.
At least one of the victims was preparing food when they died, the police said. By the time the cops arrived at the apartment, the unattended dish was on fire, police said.
The killer is on the run and has not been traced yet.
The Indian Consulate in New York on its official Twitter account said the officials were in “constant touch” with the West Chester Township Police and the family.
“We are confident about the culprit being brought to book,” the Indian Consulate assured in one of the tweets.
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