Two Indian men were killed in an ambush attack in the Bergamo area in Italy outside a makeshift warehouse used as a gurdwara.
The men were approached by four suspects in two cars.
The incident occurred at approximately 11:50 on April 17 in Covo, a small town thirty kilometres from Bergamo.
The victims have now been identified as Rajinder Singh, 48, a resident of the same municipality in the lower Bergamo area, and Gurmit Singh, 48, from Agnadello (Cremona). Both were fathers of three children.
Eyewitnesses said that the victims stepped out from the building that housed a Sikh temple. Initial reports said that the man fired the shots from the car.
There were about 10 bullet casings recovered from the scene. Witnesses saw the man raise the weapon and fire. The first five or six times were at Rajinder Singh and then at least twice more at Gurmit Singh. Both were hit in the head, "Rajinder was also hit in the chest and neck, and Gurmit in the leg," said Gurdeep Singh, a 52-year-old driver who was close to being hit by the bullets.
After the shooting, the killer got back into the car, which was driven by an accomplice, and fled with two other people,who were in a second car.
By the time the ambulance arrived, the victims were dead. The bodies have now been transferred to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Pavia for autopsies.
The investigations into the shooting and the attackers who fled the scene are being conducted by the Carabinieri Investigative Unit and the Treviglio company and are coordinated by prosecutor Fabio Magnolo, who is on their trail. The names and license plates have been collected.
Preliminary findings indicate the shooter, also an Indian and the accomplices were regular visitors at the Gurdwara Mata Sahib Kaur Ji temple and that the shooting was planned.
The incident took place as the victims were participating in preparations for the Vaisakhi festival, which is scheduled to take place over the weekend.
One eyewitness who spoke to Italy's Corriere Della Sera said, "He fired about ten shots at random, a third person was also grazed in the ear, and the two victims were hit in the head." "The shooter has been a regular at our facility for a long time," he said, "and when he arrived, he stopped in front of here and knelt down, as if to pray, then he stood up, went back, and pulled out his gun to fire a few shots at random."
The festival celebrations were subsequently cancelled.
CCTV footage from the area is being reviewd. All of the suspects are believed to have been staying at the Antegnate comune. Police noted that one of the accomplices was the former president of the Sikh Center. Investigation revealed that Rajinder Singh had arguments with the man over the management of the temple, Corriere Della Sera reported.
