Indian killing in Kansas was 'racially motivated hatred': White House

The White House has condemned the fatal attack on an Indian engineer in Kansas City last week by a US Navy veteran as “racially-motivated hatred”.

“As more facts come to light,” Deputy White House Press Sarah Sanders told reporters that it looks like the Kansas shooting last week was a “racially motivated hatred”.

Sanders reiterated that US President Donald Trump “condemns these” and any other racially motivated attacks in strongest terms. “They have no place in the country,” Sanders said at the top of her off camera briefing.

Also Read: Trump breaks silence on Kansas shooting, says America stands united in condemning hate and evil in all its forms

Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, was killed and Alok Madasani, another Indian of the same age, was injured in the shooting by the navy veteran Adam Purinton, who yelled “terrorist” and “get out of my country” before opening fire on them.

A 24-year-old American named Ian Grillot who tried to defend the Indians received injuries in the firing. Purinton, 51, apparently mistook the Indians for immigrants from the Middle East.

On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer had said the incident was “disturbing”, but did not say whether the Trump administration believed it was a hate crime.

The tragedy has led to fears among immigrants, who feel being targeted by President Donald Trump’s plans to ban travellers from certain countries and build a wall along the Mexico border to realise his campaign pledge of putting “America first”.

Meanwhile, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said it is investigating the triple shooting and homicide at a bar in Olathe in Kansas last week as a “hate crime.”