Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

August 5, 2012

Gunman kills six, dies in shootout with police

Women and children barricade themselves in closets during the attack on a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

The Associated Press

OAK CREEK, Wis. -- An unidentified gunman killed six people at a Sikh temple in suburban Milwaukee on Sunday in a rampage that left terrified congregants hiding in closets and others texting friends outside for help. The suspect was killed outside the temple in a shootout with police officers.

Police called the attack an act of domestic terrorism, but did not provide any details about the gunman or suggest a possible motive. Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards did not say whether he specifically targeted the Sikh community.

During a chaotic few hours after the first shots were fired, police in tactical gear and carrying assault rifles surrounded the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin with armored vehicles and ambulances. Witnesses struggled with unrealized fears that several shooters were holding women and children hostage inside.

One of the first officers to respond to frantic 911 calls seeking help was shot several times as he tended to a wounded victim, and was in critical condition along with two other victims Sunday night, authorities said.

"We never thought this could happen to our community," said Devendar Nagra, 48, of Mount Pleasant, whose sister escaped injury by hiding as the gunman fired in the temple's kitchen. "We never did anything wrong to anyone."

Edwards said the FBI will lead the investigation because the shootings are being treated as domestic terrorism, or an attack that originated inside the U.S. He said authorities would not say any more about their investigation until Monday morning, including the names of those killed.

But it appeared the investigation had moved beyond the temple, as police and FBI agents focused on a neighborhood in nearby Cudahy. Authorities would not comment on the activity, which included evacuating several homes.

Jatin Der Mangat, 38, of Racine, said his uncle Satwant Singh Kaleka, the temple's president, was one of those shot, but he didn't know the extent of Kaleka's injuries. When he later learned people had died, Mangat said "it was like the heart just sat down."

"This shouldn't happen anywhere," he said.

Edwards said the gunman "ambushed" one of the first officers to arrive at the temple as the officer tended to a victim outside. A second officer then exchanged gunfire with the suspect, who was fatally shot. Police had earlier said the officer who was shot killed the suspected shooter.

Tactical units went through the temple and found four people dead inside and two outside, in addition to the shooter.

The three wounded were being treated at an area trauma center. Greenfield Police Chief Bradley Wentlandt, who assisted the investigation, said the police officer had surgery and is expected to survive.

Gurpreet Kaur, 24, of Oak Creek, said her mother and a group of about 14 other women were preparing a meal in the temple kitchen when the gunman entered and started firing. Kaur said her mother felt two bullets fly by her as the group fled to the pantry. Her mother suffered what Kaur thought was shrapnel wound in her foot.

"These are people I've grown up with," she said. "They're like aunts and uncles to me. To see our community to go through something like this is numbing."

Many Sikhs in the U.S. worship on Sundays at a temple, or gurdwara, and a typical service consists of meditation and singing in a prayer room where worshippers remove their shoes and sit on the floor. Worshippers gather afterward for a meal that is open to community members, regardless of their religious beliefs.

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