Gurudwara Shooting in California's Sacramento County Leaves Two Injured

A shooting at a gurudwara in California’s Sacramento County has left two people wounded.

Details: The incident took place at the Gurdwara Sacramento Sikh Society on Sunday afternoon, 26 March, according to reports from local media.

• The injured have been hospitalised

• One of the suspects involved in the shooting is in custody

• The other suspect is an “East Indian man in his 20s or 30s” and is still at large, KCRA-TV reported

Of note: The police have reportedly ruled out that the shooting was a hate crime.

Why it matters: The gurudwara's first Nagar Kirtan Sikh Parade was reportedly underway when the incident took place. "It puts a small stain on this peaceful, very joyous day," Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt Amar Gandhi expressed to local media.

Version of events: Two men were engaged in a fistfight which then, escalated to a shooting on the temple premises, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.

• "The individuals involved all seemed to know each other. It seemed very targeted in the fact that it wasn’t some random thing that posed any danger to the other patrons other than the shooting,” the spokesperson informed

• "One suspect during that fight shot a friend of the other suspect," Gandhi said

• “Once the other suspect, who didn’t get shot, gathered himself, he shot at the original shooter and then our second shooter ran off," he added

In a statement on Facebook, the Bradshaw Sikh Society said: "It is unfortunate that a few misguided people tried to ruin a cultural and religious event."

• "A shooting occurred at the Gurdwara while the parade was in procession. We hope the culprit(s) is punished to the fullest extent of the law. They were not a part of the parade and showed up after the parade left hours earlier. These displays of violence go against our Sikh faith. We regret any inconvenience and fear this may have caused. We are strong and resilient together," it further said.