4 Sikhs among 8 killed in mass shooting at Indiana FedEx facility
Authorities identified the gunman as 19-year-old Brandon Scott Hole of Indiana, who used to work in FedEx's ground unit at the facility before he was laid off.
Four Sikhs were among at least eight people who were killed in a mass shooting at a FedEx facility in the American state of Indiana.
Five people were injured in the mass shooting, which happened on Friday morning.
Authorities identified the gunman as 19-year-old Brandon Scott Hole of Indiana, who used to work in FedEx's ground unit at the facility before he was laid off.Â
Hole opened fire with a rifle in the parking lot and then kept shooting as he entered the FedEx building, killing eight workers before shooting himself, authorities said.Â
Craig McCartt, deputy chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, said that Hole got out of his car and then randomly started shooting outside the facility."Â
The deceased Sikhs have been identified as Amarjeet Johal (66), Jaswinder Kaur (64), Jaswinder Singh (68) and Amarjit Sekhon (48)
The attack is bound to amplify tensions among the Asian American community, which has been on tenterhooks a month since six people of Asian descent were killed in a mass shooting in the Atlanta area.
US President Joe Biden expressed grief over the tragic killings and called for reducing gun violence.Â
"Vice President Harris and I have been briefed by our homeland security team on the mass shooting at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, where a lone gunman murdered eight people and wounded several more in the dark of night. We can, and must, do more to reduce gun violence and save lives," Biden said in a statement.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar expressed shock over the incident and said that India would render all possible assistance.
"Deeply shocked by shooting at FedEx facility in Indianapolis. Victims include persons of Indian American Sikh community. Our Consulate General in Chicago in touch with Mayor & local authorities in Indianapolis as well as community leaders. Will render all possible assistance," Jaishankar said.