Washington, DC – The killing of Sikh San Francisco cab driver, Sukhpal Singh Sodhi, in the early hours of Sunday, may not be a hate crime, San Francisco Police Detective Joseph Toomey told Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) on Tuesday. According to Detective Toomey, the shooting took place in what he calls a known Latino gang neighborhood, four blocks away from where the victim’s car came to a stop. At the site of the shooting were bullet holes in another parked car and in a nearby wall. He said there was also a fresh pool of blood with a trail running along the sidewalk. The blood was not of the victim, he said. Detective Toomey said it is entirely possible that Sodhi may have been dropping off or picking up a fare, or driving by when the shooting took place. At this time he said the police department cannot determine if this is a hate crime and is actively continuing its investigation of the crime as a homicide. Also, robbery has been ruled out as a motive since the victim had a large sum of money on him following the incident. The detective said the chief of police is aware of the interest in this case and has been briefed on it. Sodhi was the brother of Balbir Singh Sodhi, who was murdered in a hate crime in Arizona in the aftermath of 9/11. Earlier SMART had contacted and urged the FBI and the Department of Justice to investigate the killing as a possible hate crime particularly after the city’s police department prematurely concluded that it did not seem to be a hate crime. A joint press conference led by SMART and other Sikh American organizations will be held in San Francisco at noon tomorrow followed by a memorial service at the local El Sobrante gurdwara (Sikh place of worship).
