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Imam among two shot dead in Queens, New York | Imam among two shot dead in Queens, New York |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Police in New York say an imam and another man were shot dead as they walked along a street in the borough of Queens. | Police in New York say an imam and another man were shot dead as they walked along a street in the borough of Queens. |
The men were approached from behind by a man who shot them both in the head, a police spokesman said. | The men were approached from behind by a man who shot them both in the head, a police spokesman said. |
Imam Maulama Akonjee, 55, moved to the city from Bangladesh two years ago, reports in New York said. | Imam Maulama Akonjee, 55, moved to the city from Bangladesh two years ago, reports in New York said. |
Police said there were as yet "no indications" the men were targeted because of their faith. | Police said there were as yet "no indications" the men were targeted because of their faith. |
A man holding a gun was seen leaving the scene of the shooting in the Ozone Park area, but no-one has been arrested. | A man holding a gun was seen leaving the scene of the shooting in the Ozone Park area, but no-one has been arrested. |
Police said the suspect had a "medium complexion". | |
The imam and the second man, who was aged 64, were shot a short walk from the al-Furqan Jame mosque at about 13:50 local time (17:50 GMT) on Saturday. | The imam and the second man, who was aged 64, were shot a short walk from the al-Furqan Jame mosque at about 13:50 local time (17:50 GMT) on Saturday. |
The second man was named by media as the imam's assistant at the mosque, Thara Uddin. He was taken to hospital but died a short time later. | |
Friends of Imam Akonjee told media he had just left the mosque after prayers when he was shot. The mosque serves the large Bangladeshi community in Ozone Park. | |
A number of people from the nearby Muslim community have gathered at the scene to demonstrate, saying the shooting was a hate crime, although police said they were still investigating the motive. | A number of people from the nearby Muslim community have gathered at the scene to demonstrate, saying the shooting was a hate crime, although police said they were still investigating the motive. |
Milat Uddin, who worships at the mosque, told Associated Press that authorities should treat the killing as a hate crime. | |
"We feel really insecure and unsafe in a moment like this," he told CBS New York. "It's really threatening to us, threatening to our future, threatening to our mobility in our neighbourhood, and we're looking for the justice." | |
"He would not hurt a fly," his nephew Rahi Majid, told the New York Daily News. "You would watch him come down the street and watch the peace he brings." | "He would not hurt a fly," his nephew Rahi Majid, told the New York Daily News. "You would watch him come down the street and watch the peace he brings." |