Men attend Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash. A gunman shot a Sikh man in the arm Friday as the victim worked on his car in his suburban Seattle driveway. The shooter reportedly said, “Go back to your own country.” (Associated Press)
Vehicles are parked Sunday, March 5, 2017, at the home and driveway where a Sikh man was shot in the arm Friday, in Kent, Wash. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Men and women attend Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Satwinder Kaur, left, watches as people arrive for Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Men and women, including a man wearing a "USA" sweatshirt, attend Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
A sign notes the presence of security cameras at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017 as people reflected in a mirror arrive for Sunday services. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
A man bows his head as he attends Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Men and women attend Sunday services at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in the driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Men walk past a woman reading a newspaper at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
From left, Diljot Kaur, 12, Harsharan Kaur, 13, and Sukhbir Kaur, 11, stand outside the front door of the Gurudwara Singh Sabha of Washington, a Sikh temple in Renton, Wash., Sunday, March 5, 2017, south of Seattle. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday, March 3, 2017, as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Harsharan Kaur, who said she was at a nearby store when she heard emergency sirens from vehicles responding to the shooting Friday, said the crime made her afraid to be out shopping or doing other common activities. Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Vehicles sit parked Sunday, March 5, 2017, at the home and driveway where a Sikh man was shot in the arm Friday, March 3, 2017, in Kent, Wash. Authorities said a Sikh man said a gunman shot him in his arm Friday as he worked on his car in his driveway and told him "go back to your own country." Sikhs have previously been the target of assaults in the U.S. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, as the backlash that hit Muslims around the country expanded to include those of the Sikh faith. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
KENT, Wash. — Fear, hurt and disbelief weighed on the minds of those who gathered at a Sikh temple Sunday after the shooting of a Sikh man who said a gunman approached him in his suburban Seattle driveway and told him, “Go back to your own country.”
“Everybody who is part of this community needs to be vigilant,” Satwinder Kaur, a Sikh community leader, said as several hundred people poured into a temple in Renton for worship services about one mile from Friday night’s shooting. “It is scary,” she added. “The community has been shaken up.”
Authorities said a gunman approached the 39-year-old Sikh man as he worked on his car in his driveway in the city of Kent, about 20 miles south of Seattle. The FBI will help investigate the shooting, authorities said.
Kent Police Chief Ken Thomas said the department is investigating the shooting as a hate crime. He said no arrests have been made.
“This is a top-priority investigation, and we are doing everything possible to identify and arrest the suspect,” Thomas said in an email, adding that residents in the city of about 125,000 should “be vigilant,” but also not let the shooting hurt their quality of life.
Friday night’s shooting was on the minds of many who gathered at a Sikh Temple in nearby Renton Sunday morning for worship. As they entered and left the services, many expressed fear that one of their own was targeted and said they’re scared to go to the store or other public places. Some said they have noticed an uptick in name-calling and other racist incidents in recent months. Still others expressed hurt and disbelief at the lack of understanding and ignorance.
