Kansas bar 'racist' shooting: Man who tried to save Indian victims says 'We're all humans'

Adam Purinton being held after allegedly opening fire on bar while shouting 'get out of my country'

Caroline Mortimer
Friday 24 February 2017 13:51 GMT
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Man who tried to save victims of Kansas shooting says 'we're all humans'

A man praised as a hero for intervening in a racist attack on two Indian engineers says he was just doing what was “right”.

Ian Grillot is currently being treated in hospital after he tried to subdue Adam Purinton after he opened fire on Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe, Kansas on Wednesday attack.

A bartender said Purinton had directed “racial slurs” at two Indian engineers, Srinivas Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani, before opening fire.

Witnesses reported the 51-year-old shouting “get out of my country” before he began shooting at the suburban bar where patrons had gathered to watch the University of Kansas-TCU basketball game on television.

Mr Kuchibhotla died in hospital following the attack but Mr Madasani remains in a stable condition, according to local authorities.

Both were originally from India and worked for GPS manufacturer Garmin.

Purinton has been charged with murder and attempted murder after being tracked down at a restaurant 70 miles away in neighbouring Missouri in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Speaking to the media from his hospital bed, Mr Grillot said he had initially hidden when the shooting first broke out and confronted Purinton when he thought the gun’s magazine was empty.

He said: “I got up and proceeded to chase him down, try to subdue him. I got behind him and he turned around and fired a round at me.”

The 24-year-old was then shot in the hand and the chest, the bullet just missing a major artery.

He said: “It's not about where he was from or his ethnicity. We're all humans, so I just did what was right to do.”

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up by his sisters to help pay for his medical bills.

The bar where the shooting took place was closed on Thursday, with a sign in the door that said it would remain closed indefinitely.

Local, county, state and federal law enforcement authorities attended the news conference where the murder charges were announced.

Asked if the presence of federal authorities indicated the shooting could be considered a hate crime, FBI special agent Eric Jackson said it was too early to determine.

“This was a violent crime and we want the best prosecution that relates to this because there are victims of this crime and we want the community to know that ... we're looking to make sure that the individual involved in this is held accountable for his actions.”

Additional reporting by AP

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