Two Bangladeshi men were shot dead by an unidentified attacker in broad daylight on the East Side of Buffalo city under the New York State in the US on Saturday.
The murder took place at the 100 block of the city’s Zenner Street at around 12:30pm Saturday, according to local media and police.
Local Bangladeshis and media reports identified the deceased as Yusuf Mia, 58, of Sylhet, and Babul Uddin, 43, of Cumilla.
Media reports, citing eyewitnesses, said the duo came under attack by a man when they were doing some renovation work on Babul’s house. The man apparently had an argument with the two and then went on to shoot both of them fleeing.
Motiur Rahman Litu, a community activist and journalist living in Buffalo, told reporters that one of the Bangladeshi men was killed on the spot and the other died on the way to the local hospital.
Local news outlet WGRZ reported that police responded to the scene soon after the shooting and a SWAT team was called in as well. Police also urged locals not to leave their houses until the situation was under control.
At the same time, local police’s Crisis Management Team cordoned off the entire area. Police are yet to confirm whether or not a suspect was identified and whether they are in custody.
The bodies of Yusuf and Babul will be handed over to their families after autopsies on Monday, reports said citing local authorities.
The murder of the two Bangladeshis occurred just a day after a 31-year-old man was shot dead on the first block of the city’s Young Street. That incident took place at around 9pm Friday. Police later said that the man was shot multiple times and he died on the spot.
The shootings have created panic among 50,000 expatriates living in Buffalo, which sits near the Canadian border. Babul moved to Buffalo from Virginia eight months ago while Yusuf went to the US from Sylhet just four months back, according to reports.
Murray Holman, executive director of Buffalo's Stop the Violence Coalition, told the media that the people living in the city of Buffalo are peaceful and there have not been such violent incidents in recent times. “It’s sad when things like this happen.”
It is very sad that Bangladeshis who are known for being hard workers have come under such attack, he said.
Local Bangladeshi expatriates organised a protest programme on Sunday, demanding immediate arrest of the killer and justice for the families of Babul and Yusuf.
