Washington: A 25-year-old Indian was shot dead in the city of Yakima in Washington state of USA on Thursday.
Two-hooded assailants robbed Vikram Jaryal at the store where he was employed.
Though he cooperated with the assailants when they demanded cash, he was shot point blank.
“My heartfelt condolences on your brother’s tragic death. I am asking the Indian Embassy in US to provide all help and assistance,” external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said in a tweet to the victim’s brother who brought it to her notice.
We are coordinating with the investigative agencies. They have got the CCTV footage and are in the process of apprehending the culprits. /4
— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) April 8, 2017
Vikram Jaryal is the son of Parshotam Singh of Jandwal, Mukerian in Hoshiarpur of Punjab.
Accoring to Yakima Police Department, around 2 am on April 6, they responded to a report of robbery and shooting at the AP-PM t 601 E.Yakima Ave. “Responding offices found the store clerk had been shot during an armed robbery of the store.
The clerk reported he had been robbed by two persons who were both wearing masks,” the police said.
The police said Jaryal was transported to a local hospital but died a short time later.
“The investigation has been turned over to detectives and is ongoing,” the police said.
The video footage of the incident is unclear but the local police have got some pictures to try to establish the identity of the assailants and also sought help from the public.
The Yakima police in an appeal to the public said, “We need your help to identify two murder suspects. Tragically a 25-year-old store clerk was murdered this morning as two suspects robbed the AM-PM on East Yakima Avenue. We realize the pictures do not show the faces of the suspects clearly, but the clothing is quite distinctive.”
Vikram was working as a clerk in the store when the two masked men approached him and demanded cash. Vikram offered no resistance but suddenly, one of the them fired at him, reports said. Vikram narrated the sequence of events to the police before he died at a hospital.
“I don’t really know what to say right now except that we’re very upset,” said Preet Singh, the owner of the store has been quoted as saying in the media. He was not in the store when the incident took place.
The murder has sparked an outrage. “What makes me even more angry is I doubt they made off with more than maybe a couple of hundred dollars. They ended a life for that little,” Lorry Loose, a resident of Yakima said in response to the police post.