Indian-origin man shoots dead wife, three relatives in US over family dispute
New York (PTI): A 51-year-old Indian-origin man has been arrested for allegedly shooting dead his wife and three relatives purportedly due to a family dispute in the US state of Georgia.
Vijay Kumar was taken into custody a short distance from the residence in Lawrenceville city where the shooting occurred on Friday, Gwinnett County Police said in a social media post.
Gwinnett County Police identified the victims as Kumar’s wife Meemu Dogra, 43, who is an Indian national, and the relatives Gourav Cumar, 33, Nidhi Chander, 37, and Harish Chander, 38.
The Consulate General of India in Atlanta, expressing grief over the shooting, said the alleged shooter has been arrested and all possible assistance was being extended to the bereaved family.
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“We are deeply grieved by a tragic shooting incident linked to an alleged family dispute, in which an Indian national was among the victims. The alleged shooter has been arrested, and all possible assistance is being extended to the bereaved family,” it said on X.
Police said an argument began between Kumar and Dogra at their home in Atlanta and they travelled to their relatives’ home on Brook Ivy Court with their 12-year-old child.
Gourav Cumar, Nidhi Chander, and Harish Chander, resided at the Brook Ivy Court home, along with two juveniles who are seven and 10 years old, police said.
Kumar’s child was the one who called 911 after the incident occurred, police said.
“It is unknown at this time what the argument was about, why they came to the residence, or what led up to the incident,” police said.
Kumar has been charged with four counts of aggravated assault, four counts of felony murder, four counts of malice murder, one count of cruelty to children in the first degree, and two counts of cruelty to children in the third degree.
Police said officers were dispatched to the 1000 block of Brook Ivy Court in Lawrenceville city on Friday at approximately 2.30 am after receiving reports of shots fired inside a residence.
Upon arrival, officers located four deceased adults inside the home, all suffering from apparent gunshot wounds, it said.
The three children were inside the residence, hiding in a closet and were unharmed.
Police said the motive remains under investigation but appears to be domestic related.
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NATO, others turn down US call for help in Hormuz: Trump
Washington (PTI): President Donald Trump on Tuesday said NATO and most of US' other allies have rejected his calls to help secure the Strait of Hormuz as the war with Iran entered the third week.
In a social media post, Trump asserted that Iran’s military has been “decimated” and he no longer felt the need for assistance from NATO countries or anyone else.
Last week, Trump had sought help from European nations and others who depend on oil supplies transiting from the Hormuz Strait to safeguard the critical waterway.
“The United States has been informed by most of our NATO “Allies” that they don’t want to get involved with our Military Operation against the Terrorist Regime of Iran, in the Middle East, this, despite the fact that almost every Country strongly agreed with what we are doing, and that Iran cannot, in any way, shape, or form, be allowed to have a Nuclear Weapon,” the US President said in a post on Truth Social.
Iran's attacks on Gulf nations and its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil is transported, have sparked increasing concerns of a global energy crisis and are unnerving the world economy.
“I am not surprised by their action, however, because I always considered NATO, where we spend Hundreds of Billions of Dollars per year protecting these same Countries, to be a one-way street — We will protect them, but they will do nothing for us, in particular, in a time of need,” Trump said.
He said Australia, Japan and South Korea too have turned down his call for help.
“Fortunately, we have decimated Iran’s Military – Their Navy is gone, their Air Force is gone, their Anti-Aircraft and Radar is gone and perhaps, most importantly, their Leaders, at virtually every level, are gone, never to threaten us, our Middle Eastern Allies, or the World, again,” Trump said.
He said that given the scale of recent military successes, the US no longer "need" or desires assistance from NATO countries, adding that it never relied on such support in the first place.
Speaking as President of the United States, the "most powerful" country in the world, "we do not need" help from anyone, Trump said.
The West Asia conflict began on February 28 when the US-Israeli combine conducted airstrikes on Iran.
The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that connects the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, has effectively been shut following the US and Israel attack on Iran and Tehran's sweeping retaliation.
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had said that from Tehran's "perspective", the strait is "open". "It is only closed to Iran's enemies, to those who carried out unjust aggression against our country and to their allies.”
Earlier in the day, a second Indian-flagged LPG tanker, Nanda Devi, reached the country after safely sailing from the war-hit Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, the first ship, Shivalik, reached Mundra port in Gujarat.
As of now, 22 Indian vessels remain on the west side and two on the east side of the strait.
Indian authorities are in constant touch with all the relevant stakeholders in the region to secure the safe passage of the remaining ships, officials said.
