Washington Shooting: Indian-American Among Those Killed

September 17, 2013

[b]Washington: [/b][color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]Indian-American Vishnu Pandit was among the 12 individuals killed by a gunman at a highly secure Navy Yard in the American Capital, the latest in the series of mass shootouts in the US in the last few years.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]In all 12 people, mostly military contractors were killed when the gunman, himself a defence contractor from Fort Worth in Texas, went on a shooting rampage inside the Washington Navy Yard yesterday.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]The gunman, Aaron Alexis, also died in the shootout.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]The Washington Metropolitan Police yesterday released the names of seven of those who were killed in the shootout, with one of them being, 61-year-old Vishnu.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]The other six identified were Michael Arnold, 59, Sylvia Frasier, 53, Kathy Gaarde, 62, John Roger Johnson, 73, Frank Kohler, 50, and Kenneth Bernard Proctor, 46.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]No other details were immediately known about Mr Pandit, except that he was a defence contractor.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]President Barack Obama condemned the shooting at Washington's Navy Yard as a "cowardly act".[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]Later, Obama issued a proclamation in the honour of those who died in the shooting and ordered that the national flag be flown at half-mast. He also cancelled a musical evening scheduled at the White House.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]Obama, who personally monitored the developments, called FBI director James Comey to get an update on the status of the investigations.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]The FBI has sought information about Alexis, which it believes was responsible for the massacre.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]"Alexis' place of birth is Queens, New York, and his last known residence was Ft. Worth, Texas," the FBI said in a statement.[/size][/font][/color]

[color=#000000][font=Roboto, sans-serif][size=4]The Washington DC Mayor, Vincent Gray, said the motives of the shooter were not yet known.[/size][/font][/color]