Leaders say city remains safe despite Sikh shooting

City leaders are trying to assure residents Kent remains a safe place and that a police and FBI investigation into a potential hate crime will solve who shot and injured a Sikh man.

Mayor Suzette Cooke spoke at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting about the shooting of Deep Rai, 39, last Friday night in his East Hill driveway by a man who reportedly told Rai to “go back to your own country.” Rai suffered a single gunshot wound to the arm and is out of the hospital. As of Wednesday, the shooter remained at large.

“It was just two weeks ago at a council meeting that Council President (Bill) Boyce and I stood together and provided a proclamation about this city of Kent being a welcoming city,” Cooke said. “The event that has occurred is one that certainly spoke to the opposite of that. But that one event does not define who we are. We are still a welcoming city for all that choose to live, work and play here in Kent.”

Rai is a U.S. citizen, originally from India’s Punjab state, according to Jasmit Singh, a Seattle-area Sikh community leader.

Police Chief Ken Thomas gave the council and mayor a brief update about the case.

“This was a terrible event that occurred and our police department is working with the FBI and investigating this case as a hate crime,” Thomas said. “It is a top priority investigation for our department, and we are providing all resources available – federal, state and local to do everything we can to bring this case to a successful conclusion.”

Thomas said a press conference with the FBI had tentatively been scheduled for Thursday at City Hall for an update about the investigation.

Thomas declined to release many details about the case because of the active investigation. The shooting was reportedly around 8 p.m. on March 3. The victim was in his driveway working on his vehicle when he was approached by the unknown man. An altercation ensued and the man was shot.

Police are looking for the suspect, described as a 6-foot tall white male with a mask covering the lower half of his face, stocky build and dressed in dark clothing.

The FBI’s Seattle-based office stepped in to assist Kent Police.

“The FBI remains committed​ to investigating c​rimes that are potentially hate-motivated and we continue to work with all our community partners in the Seattle area,” said FBI media coordinator Ayn Dietrich-Williams in a Monday email. “Our involvement is routine. We offer additional manpower.”

Thomas emphasized that residents remain safe.

“I do not think other members of our community are in danger,” Thomas said. “I think this was an isolated incident and a crime of opportunity. I would recommend members of our community remain vigilant. I do not want this to negatively impact the quality of life of members of our community in Kent.”

But the shooting definitely has put the Sikh community on edge.

“We applaud the decision by the Kent Police Department to pursue a hate crime investigation,” said Rajdeep Singh, Sikh Coalition interim program manager. “We are thankful for everything that local authorities are doing to locate the suspect and protect the Sikh community.

“While we appreciate the efforts of state and local officials to respond to attacks like this, we need our national leaders to make hate crime prevention a top priority. Tone matters in our political discourse because this a matter of life or death for millions of Americans who are worried about losing loved ones to hate.”

According to the coalition, the Sikh American community, which has been an integral part of the American fabric for more than 125 years, is estimated to be hundreds of times more likely to suffer hate crimes than the average American.

The shooting in Kent shares similarities with the deadly Feb. 22 shooting in Olathe, Kansas, and follows the larger national pattern of hate violence directed at minority communities throughout the United States in the wake of the presidential election, according to the coalition.

“The White House needs to show leadership in preventing hate violence,” Rajdeep Singh said. “Immigrants and religious minorities are being attacked around the nation, but the Trump administration has not even created a task force to address this issue. Our national leaders must not look the other way while Americans worry about losing loved ones to hate.”

Gov. Jay Inslee released a statement on Sunday about the Kent shooting.

“This hateful incident echoes the disturbing pattern of anti-immigrant, anti-Semitic, and anti-Muslim attacks in our state, and across the country,” Inslee said. “Just last week in St. Louis, a similar incident occurred with an even more tragic outcome. These acts of violence are hateful, detestable, and un-American.

“Earlier (Sunday) I spoke to Jasmit Singh, one of the leaders in the local Sikh community, and let him know that Washington stands with the Sikh community and all members of our diverse state. My office stands ready to help in any way possible.”

Satwinder Kaur, a Kent Sikh community leader who officially announced last week that she is running this year for the Kent City Council, told the council on Tuesday that residents have rallied to support her and others.

“One hate crime does not define our community,” said Kaur who is helping to lead a rally on Saturday at Kent Lutheran Church to unite people of South King County against hate crimes. “We have a lot of diversity. I am very thankful to our community for all of the love and support I have received via emails, messages and text messages.”