New York, June 3, 2016: 47-year old Sikh man Davinder Singh went to the USA some 25 years ago and was living happily. But everything changed on June 2, 2016, when the news came that he was shot dead at his gas station in Newark, New Jersey.
The family of the victim Sikh man believes that the deceased fell prey to hate crime and was targeted due to his religion. But the problem is that the awareness in the American society is so low that post 9/11 several innocent Sikhs became a target of White supremacists who mistook them for Middle Easterners.
The current shooting has revived the memory of the murder of six innocent Sikhs at the Wisconsin Gurudwara of 2012 that outraged the minority community in the USA.
No one has been arrested for the murder of Davinder Singh till the writing of this report.
The incident happened at the Power Gas Station on West Market Street just before 4:30 p.m. Monday.
Arriving officers found 47-year-old Davinder Singh unresponsive at the scene with a gunshot wound to the chest, and he was rushed to University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
There were apparently no customers there at the time.
A neighbor heard the shot and ran outside to help.
“It happened so fast, I walked in my house and the gunshot I just heard. And I said no, that’s firecrackers, and his brother came out, ‘Somebody help me’, screaming and stuff,” said neighbor Mattie Griffis.
The Essex County Prosecutor’s Officer and Newark Police Department are investigating the shooting.
Locals tell Eyewitness News that Singh was well-known in the area and was regarded as a hard-working individual.
People in the area fondly called the victim David and say he often had kind words and pleasant greetings.
Police sources say they have a strong lead on a suspect that they are following in connection with the incident.
There are cameras outside the gas station, which police are hoping will help lead them to the gunman.
The station was closed for the day, but several customers stopped by to express their shock and anger.
