Shooting at Sikh temple in Wis., at least 7 dead
Last Updated 12:30 a.m. ET
(CBS/AP) OAK CREEK, Wis. - A gunman allegedly killed six people and wounded three others before being shot dead by a police officer at a Sikh temple outside of Milwaukee Sunday morning.
The gunman allegedly shot a police officer ten times as the officer tried to help another victim. The officer survived the shooting, but remained hospitalized Monday morning with serious injuries. The suspected gunman was later confronted and killed by another officer outside the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek, near Milwaukee.
Late Sunday, the investigation appeared to move beyond the temple as police, federal agents and the county sheriff's bomb squad swarmed a neighborhood in nearby Cudahy, evacuated several homes and searched a duplex. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent Tom Ahern said warrants were being served at the home of the shooter.
"He did not speak, he just began shooting," said Harpreet Singh, relaying a description of the attack from the wife of his uncle, temple president Satwant Singh Kaleka.
Law enforcement sources tell CBS News the alleged gunman was a heavy-set, 40-year-old Caucasian male who lived in the area. A search is being conducted of his house.
Officials say he was armed with a 9-millimeter, semi-automatic pistol. The ATF has recovered the weapon and is running a trace. A second gun found at the scene belonged to one of the police officers who confronted the gunman outside the temple.
The suspect, described as heavily tattooed, wore a white t-shirt and black military BDU pants. He also had ammunition pouches.
While the local police have labeled this attack "domestic terrorism," federal sources urge caution with that because the investigation is in its very early stages.
Paul Piaskoski of CBS affiliate WDJT-TV in Milwaukee reports the children inside the temple taking part in a birthday party in the basement of the facility were among the first to hear the gunfire. They allegedly first thought it was fireworks. When they realized it was gunfire, they were the ones who ran and warned the adults.
The police officer who was shot multiple times while helping a victim was transported to a nearby hospital, where he is in surgery. Greenfield Police Chief Brad Wentlandt said the officer, a 20-year veteran, is expected to survive.
The gunman then confronted a second officer, who returned fire, striking and killing the suspect.
Wentlandt said emergency medical personnel identified seven people dead - four inside the temple and three outside, including the suspect.
"Because of the heroic efforts of the officers," said Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards, "they stopped this from being worse than it could have been."
Edwards referred to the shooting as "a domestic terror-type incident," and said that the FBI will be taking over the criminal investigation, assisted by local police and other agencies.
Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting
Although the building has been cleared, the evidence team has still to recover weapons on the scene.
The first 911 call to police about the shooting was received at 10:35 a.m., Wendlant said. Three hours later, police were searching the temple to determine whether the gunman had an accomplice. Eyewitnesses had offered conflicting accounts; several said they believe there was more than one gunman.
A spokeswoman for Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, the main trauma center in the area, said doctors there are treating three victims of the shooting. Spokeswoman Carolyn Bellin said the three are all men. One is in the operating room, another is in a surgical intensive care unit, and the third is being evaluated in the emergency room.
Belliin said the hospital is prepared to receive more patients from the shooting, but does not know if more will be on the way.
Among the wounded was the temple's president, Satwant Kaleka, who was shot in the back, according to his sister-in-law, Deepinder Dhaliwal, who spoke on camera to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
In a telephone interview Sandeep Khattra told CBS News that her grandfather was shot dead, while her mother was among the temple members who hid in the temple's kitchen.
There are more than a dozen ambulances parked outside the temple, and police have corralled media and a handful of bystanders to clear out from the area near the temple.
Sukhwindar Nagr, of Racine, said he called his brother-in-law's phone and a priest at the temple answered and told him that his brother-in-law had been shot, along with three priests. The priest also said women and children were hiding in closets in the temple, Nagr said.
The White House said President Obama was aware of the shooting and was being kept up to date by the FBI.
In a statement the Indian Embassy called the incident "tragic," and said they were in touch with the National Security Council in Washington. India's Consulate General in Chicago is also monitoring the developments, and an official is visiting the site to ascertain the situation.
Wis. Gov. Scott Walker issued a statement, saying, "Our hearts go out to the victims and their families, as we all struggle to comprehend the evil that begets this terrible violence."
Sikh rights groups have reported a rise in bias attacks since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The Washington-based Sikh Coalition has reported more than 700 incidents in the U.S. since 9/11, which advocates blame on anti-Islamic sentiment. Sikhs don't practice the same religion as Muslims, but their long beards and turbans often cause them to be mistaken for Muslims, advocates say.
Sikhism is a monotheistic faith that was founded in South Asia more than 500 years ago. It has roughly 27 million followers worldwide. Observant Sikhs do not cut their hair; male followers often cover their heads with turbans - which are considered sacred - and refrain from shaving their beards.
There are roughly 500,000 Sikhs in the U.S., according to estimates. The majority worldwide live in India.
Police at this time have not identified another gunman, but Wentlandt said the situation was fluid and a search of the ground is continuing.
According to the temple's website, the temple lies on 13 acres of land. The main brick building, about 17,500 square feet in size, includes a place of worship, a library, an education area, and a playspace for children.
The temple has up to 400 members.
Oak Creek is south of Milwaukee along Lake Michigan.
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The Sikh religion is difficult to enter unless you are born a Sikh in India, and to leave the Islamic faith is not easy when they demand death to the apostate, which makes these two religions and other religions in the world to fail the "Freedom of Religion" act in America.
"America has prosper as a nation with one language and one religion, "That religion, or the duty which we owe to our Creator and the manner of discharging it, can be directed by reason and conviction, not by force or violence, and therefore, all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience, and that it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love, and charity towards each other."
With the Immigration Act of 1965 has marked a radical break from the immigration policies of the past. The majority of who were opposed to the act, but the legislation assured that the passage would not influence America's culture significantly only later to be proven wildly inaccurate. The Asians and the Africans has displayed the unwillingness to assimilate into the American fabric. The American populace feels threaten with being forced to accept these imported religions that most had escape from, only to have it follow them to the last refuge of religious freedom. Political Correctness group needs to be more enlightened in American history.
It is a shame, as an American. We request all communities to stand by the Sikhs to track down the individuals and their affiliates responsible for this hate crime.
It is our duty to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen. Hate is one of the many sources of disrupting the peace in a society and it is our duty to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it. We have an obligation to maintain a balance in the society as an American as well as fellow human being.
Sikhism: know more about it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycVcERNQrTE&feature=channel&list=UL
What is Sikhism
Who is a Sikh
Sikh culture
Importance of ethics, morality & religion in a Sikh's life
Importance of naam and its definition
History of Sikhism
Supreme worship place: Golden Temple
This has lead to several acts of violence specifically targeting sikhs all over the US since 9/11.
Even today's Los Angeles Times carries a side story of the massacre at Wisconsin. Not a single photograph on the front page. Very Pathetic.
A callous attitude by the government and the media will definitely result in a repeat of violance against innocent Sikhs specially if their is another terrorist attack on american soil, God Forbid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_hZQPpCJ1M
Let us not forget the 329 people who were killed when Sikh terrorists bombed the Boeing 747 "Kanishka" and killed 280 Canadians, 27 British citizens and 22 Indians. So much for being a "peaceful" religion... oh and did I forget mention the gunning down in cold blood of India 1st woman prime minister Indira Gandhi??? By sikh terrorists???
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The attack on an Air India jet in June 1985 by Sikh terrorists was a one-off incident. Nothing before or since has happened. The motivation for the attack was retaliation for a state-terrorist attack by India on the sacred Golden Temple in the city of Amritsar. I note that when America's important locations were attacked on 9/11, America responded, not with a one-off attack, but with an 11 year war on the region from whence it came.
A Canadian investigation was inconclusive and the court case was dismissed. India is still under the autocratic rule of the Nehru, Indira Family, a sham of a democracy where corruption and lawlessness is rampant. They massacred over 10000 Sikhs in the pogroms Delhi and around the nation and got way with a Genocide, not a single conviction
As with the multiple eyewitness reports of more than one gunmen at the Aurora shooting, this report is swept down the memory hole and out of the view of the public who rely solely upon the propaganda narrative of the lamestream, state controlled media.