Shooting at Sikh Gurudwara in Wisconcin

Kanwaljit Singh · #1 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 01:07 AM

Source http://www.suntimes.com/news/nation/...cH_CY.facebook
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/united-states/38890-shooting-at-sikh-gurudwara-in-wisconcin.html

OAK CREEK, Wis. (AP) — There has been a shooting at a Sikh temple outside of Milwaukee. Police are still searching for gunmen and said there still is a hostage situation at the temple. Other reports indicate a gunman left the temple and is on the loose.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890
One police officer was shot multiple times, according to a police update, and a suspect was shot.

Reports were unclear on how many people were shot or killed, but estimates of four killed and 20 shot at the temple.

The Journal Sentinel said it received one report that children were being taken to a basement an held as hostages.

CNN reported that aerial shots show multiple bodies in the temple’s parking lot.

Oak Creek Police Department dispatcher Stephanie Uljanec says the shooting took place Sunday morning at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin but she doesn’t know how many people are shot or if there are fatalities.

A spokeswoman for Froedert Hospital, the main trauma center in the Milwaukee area, has told CNN that two men have been taken there and the hospital is ready to receive more.

There are more than a dozen ambulances parked outside the temple, and police have corralled media and a handful of bystanders to an area near the temple.

Oak Creek is south of Milwaukee along Lake Michigan.

Kanwaljit Singh · #2 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 01:20 AM

President of the Gurudwara shot at.
Multiple gunmen, one taken down.
One cop injured.
3 people in hospital, 2 shot in face.
There is still hostage situation.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890
SWAT called in, electricity and other supplies cut.

Kanwaljit Singh · #3 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 01:54 AM

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/08/05...t-sikh-temple/

Luckysingh · #4 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 03:08 AM

This is distressing, we don't know the full story yet at the moment i've been watching CBC inbetween the olympics.

They do not know if it was hate crime or if the killer(s) were hitmen.-
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890
No confrimed gurdwara political issues such as elections
However, there was a suspected history of objections and threats when nagar kirtans were organized.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890

This is a few weeks after the massacre in Colorado film theatre.

Luckysingh · #5 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 03:16 AM

There are still people inside as they don't know if another gunman is inside.
These people are hiding in cupboards, basement and other rooms.

I'm not sure why the SWAT team have not stormed in to find another suspected gunman- is it because they are trying to respect the fact it is a gurdwara!!

Apparantly the cop that shot the killed gunman, himself took bullets fired at him by the killer. We know that this killer was a White man.

Soul_jyot · #6 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 03:47 AM

At least 7 dead, including shooter, at Sikh Temple

Sunday, August 5, 2012

At least seven people were killed, including one shooter, just after 10 a.m. Sunday at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, police said.

Four of the dead were inside the temple at 7512 S. Howell Ave. and three of the dead, including a shooter, were outside the temple.

A police SWAT team entered the building before noon and brought uninjured people out of the building at 7512 S. Howell Ave.

They started removing injured people from the temple's prayer room.

SWAT team members were still sweeping the building about 1 p.m. and an explosion was heard from the building at that time. It was unclear what the explosion was.

The first officer on the scene encountered an active shooter and exchanged fire with him, according to Greenfield Police Chief Bradley Wentlandt who briefed media on the scene.

The shooter went down and is believed to be dead, said Wentlandt, who is acting as police spokesman for the incident. He said authorities had no evidence of a second shooter.

Wentlandt said the officer was hit multiple times, but is expected to survive. He said the officer was a 20-year veteran and "an extremely accomplished tactical officer." He was taken to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa where he was in surgery just before 2 p.m.

Among those who were shot was the president of the temple, Satwant Kaleka, who was taken to a hospital.

Deepinder Dhaliwal said Kaleka, his brother in law, was shot in the back, but has now been taken to a hospital in St. Francis.

Dhaliwal said his sister, the president's wife, called him while hiding inside the building with a few other women.

**** Katschke, a spokesman for the Medical College of Wisconsin, said three adult males were being treated at Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. One of the three was undergoing surgery in the intensive care ward. Another is in an operating room. And the third is being treated in the emergency room, Katschke said.

All three were being treated for gunshot wounds. All are in critical condition, according to Froedtert.

People were in the temple as early as 6:30 a.m. Sunday and many more were arriving for a service that was to begin about 11:30 a.m.

There were reports that children were taken away from the area of the building where the shooting took place after shots were fired.

Someone who sent a text message to a Journal Sentinel reporter shortly before noon said that there were two shooters with children possibly as hostages.

And the head priest was locked inside a restroom with a cell phone and that there were as many as 20 to 30 victims.

One of the temple's committee members, Ven Boba Ri, said that based on communication with people inside the temple, the shooter was a white male in his 30s.

"We have no idea," he said of the motive. "It's pretty much a hate crime. It's not an insider."

According to Ri, the man started shooting after he walked up to a priest who was standing outside, and shot him.

Then he went inside and started shooting.

People inside the temple were using cell phones to call people outside, saying please send help, Ri said.

"It's sad, I don't know how to describe it," said Ri, who has been fielding calls all morning from around the world, including India.

"Sikhism is such a peaceful religion. We have suffered for generations, in India and even here."

"We're all the same," said temple member Jaswinder Schandock. "Everybody has the same blood."

Groups of temple members were gathered, on cell phones, conferring in small groups and watching from afar.

Oak Creek police were not giving out any information at this point.

Numerous police agencies had responded to scene to assist Oak Creek, including the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

At least two dozen ambulances responded, including from Oak Creek, Caledonia, North Shore Fire, Greenfield and West Allis. Those ambulances had moved to the temple about 12:40 p.m.

As of about 1:15 p.m., the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office said it had not been called to the scene.

The Joint Terrorism Task Force, a collection of federal, state and local law enforcement, was on the scene of the shooting by 1 p.m. Those task forces, several of which are situated around the country, typically work quietly to prevent terrorism attacks but also respond to mass shootings to help coordinate law enforcement. Sources said it was too early to say if this will be considered an act of terrorism.

U.S. Attorney James Santelle said he expected federal law enforcement will play a role in the investigation. Exactly what that role is remains to be seen, Santelle said.

"I am clearly anticipating that there will be federal investigative support," Santelle said.

In previous mass shootings, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives trace the gun or guns used in the shooting. FBI also may take on a general investigative role, as they have in the past, helping with search warrants or conducting out of state aspects of the investigation.

Meanwhile, Brookfield police officers were dispatched to the Sikh Temple at 3675 N. Calhoun Road as a precaution in the aftermath of the Oak Creek shooting.

At least three squads were at the temple in Waukesha County and they blocked off roads leading to the building.

About 50 people were at the Brookfield temple for a morning service and many of them went outside after they learned of the shooting in Oak Creek.

More than 20 million people worldwide follow the Sikh religion, established about 500 years ago in the Punjab region of India. Devout male followers must wear long beards and their hair in a turban, and in America are sometimes mistaken for Muslims; the two religions are not affiliated. Sikhism is an offshoot of Hinduism, but unlike Hindus, who believe in multiple deities, Sikhs are monotheistic.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890

In the days after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, at least four acts of violence against Sikhs occurred in the Milwaukee area, , said Swarnjit S. Arora, a founder of the local Sikh Religious Society said in 2002. Two taxis owned by Sikh drivers were vandalized, and two Sikh men were assaulted, said Arora. The crimes were not widely reported by the news media because they were overshadowed by dramatic events across the nation, he said.

About 3,000 Sikh families live in southeastern Wisconsin. A tight-knit community, they meet for religious services and to share meals at the Religious Society in Brookfield and the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, in Oak Creek, which opened in 2007. Sikh temples are called gurdwaras, or the gateway to the guru.

The Oak Creek scene was similar to the situation in 2005, when a gunman killed seven people and himself at a church meeting in a Brookfield hotel.

Terry Ratzmann, 44, opened fire March 12, 2005, during a worship service of the Living Church of God at the Sheraton hotel in Brookfield.

Journal Sentinel staff writers Tom Daykin, John Diedrich, Bruce Vielmetti, Don Walker, James B. Nelson and Georgia Pabst contributed to this report.

source: http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/r...165059506.html
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890

NOTE: Most of the incoming news reports indicate the shooters were "TWO WHITE MEN" ! Furthermore, Law enforcement agencies are "guarding" other Sikh Temples in the state.

Luckysingh · #7 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 04:25 AM

Terrible tragedy this is. They think that it was only one shooter and he was the one gunned down.

Milwaukee is a nice place with a lot of european immigrants, it also has many mexicans, oriental and asians. I can't understand why brown sikhs would encounter such hate crime.

Milwaukee has always been famous for it's brewing industry and for me as the home of ''Happy Days''- the US sitcom in the 80's featuring the Fonz. I was always a huge fan of this TV series and that's why I paid a visit there a few years back. I had a fantastic time there and would always want it to be memorable for 'Happy Days' and what that meant for me.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890
Now, I have this tragic and sad episode to remember the city by.

The cop that took the killer down was himself a hero for taking those bullets and confronting him instead of hiding aside trying to get a perfect open shot.
The rapid actions of the police in response to 911 calls were tremendous and saved many more lives, as this would have been much worse if the police had not acted fast enough.

My heart goes out to all the victims and families, it's sad when you associate a place for nice memories before hand and then something like this happens.

Soul_jyot · #8 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 04:49 AM

Firing in US gurdwara packed with devotees; 7 dead, 20 hurt

New York, August 5

Six persons were killed in an attack on a gurdwara during Sunday morning prayers in Wisconsin by at least one gunman who was also shot dead, the police said.

At least 20 persons were also injured when the shooter opened fire indiscriminately amid reports that 12 children were taken hostages at the Sikh shrine.

Greenfield police chief Bradley Wentlandt said four persons were gunned down inside the gurdwara while three, including the shooter, died outside the shrine. The identity of those killed was not immediately known.

The police said it had not yet identified if there was any other shooter involved in the incident. Preliminary reports had said that at least three gunmen were involved in the attack.

The critically injured have been admitted to Froedtert hospital. The shooting at Oak Creek, south of Wisconsin’s biggest city Milwaukee, occurred around 11 am (local time), the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel reported. Oak Creek is about 1,250 km from New York.

About 400 persons were present in the gurdwara at the time of the incident. A Sikh priest had specially come from India to address the gathering on Sunday.

US President Barack Obama was briefed by his counter-terrorism adviser John Brennan on the situation and the White House was seized of the matter, US officials said.

The shooter was last seen with two handguns.

President of the Sikh Society Gurcharan Grewal had earlier said, “The people who started shooting are three white people.”

A police spokesman said a law enforcement officer was shot multiple times by the unidentified shooter, who was “put down”. “We do not know if there are additional shooters in the gurdwara,” he said. The officer has been transported to hospital and was expected to survive.
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890

The spokesman said tactical operations were going on and the situation was “very fluid”.

Media reports said about 12 children have been taken hostages.

Indian Ambassador Nirupama Rao described the shooting as “extremely tragic” and said the Embassy was in touch with the National Security Council at White House. The Consul General at Chicago was deputing an official to the spot. — PTI
Reference:: Sikh Philosophy Network http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/showthread.php?t=38890

source: http://www.tribuneindia.com/2012/20120806/main2.htm

Ishna · #9 (**permalink**) 06-Aug-2012, 05:43 AM

What a horrible, horrible thing to occur. My heart goes out to this community.