An ambulance responds to the scene of an emergency.Photo:Getty
Getty
An elderly Sikh-American man was killed in what police say was a “physical altercation” following a motor vehicle collision, stoking fears among his family as well as many in New York’s Sikh community that he could have been the victim of a hate crime.
Jasmer Singh, 66, was in an accident in a residential neighborhood with another driver on Thursday afternoon, the New York Police Department tells PEOPLE in a statement. He was taken to the hospital, where he died on Friday.
Singh’s son Subeg Singh shared the news of his father’s death on Facebook, writing that it “could be a hate crime. Please pray for his soul.”
Subeg toldCBS Newsthat his father suffered a broken skull and broken teeth. He is calling for the incident to be investigated as a hate crime, according to CBS News.
“The guy was addressing my father with his costumes, with his turbans,” Subeg told the outlet. “There was no reason for someone to go in [with] that intensity. My father was targeted and it is a possible hate crime.”
Singh’s death came at a time of heightened fear of hate-crimes following the Israel-Hamas war in the Middle East, according to information from the Department of Homeland Security,ABC Newsreported.
“We respectfully request that all potential factors, including bias, be considered throughout the investigation into Mr. Singh’s death,” the letter reads, in part.
Japneet Singh, a local community organizer, echoed this thought. “You don’t have to be a terrorist for it to be called a hate-crime,” he tells PEOPLE.
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Singh’s wife, who was in the car with him on their way back from her doctor, is struggling after witnessing the incident.
“She still has that terrible impression [in her] mind,” said Subeg.
Police have arrested Gilbert Augustin, 30, and charged him with manslaughter, assault and fleeing the scene of an accident.
Augustin has pleaded not guilty to all his charges and is set to appear at the Queens Criminal Court on Thursday, according to court records.
source: people.com
