Two Indian men were killed in an ambush outside a makeshift warehouse used as a gurdwara in the Bergamo area of Italy. The victims were approached by four suspects in two cars and shot at about 11:50 on April 17 in Covo, a small town roughly 30 kilometres from Bergamo.
The dead have been identified as Rajinder Singh, 48, a resident of the lower Bergamo area, and Gurmit Singh, 48, from Agnadello (Cremona). Both were fathers of three children. Eyewitnesses said the men stepped out of the building that houses the Sikh temple when the assailants confronted them. Initial reports indicate the shooter fired from a vehicle.
Police recovered about 10 bullet casings at the scene. Witnesses described the shooter raising a weapon and firing: the first five or six shots struck Rajinder Singh and at least two further shots hit Gurmit Singh. According to Gurdeep Singh, a 52-year-old driver who narrowly avoided being hit, Rajinder was struck in the head, chest and neck, and Gurmit in the head and leg. A third person was reported to have been grazed in the ear. After the shooting the gunman returned to a car driven by an accomplice and fled with two others in a second vehicle.
Ambulances arrived to find both victims dead. Their bodies were transferred to the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Pavia for autopsies. Investigations are being led by the Carabinieri Investigative Unit and the Treviglio company under prosecutor Fabio Magnolo, who said investigators have collected names and license plate details. CCTV footage from the area is being reviewed.
Preliminary findings suggest the shooter and accomplices were regular visitors at the Gurdwara Mata Sahib Kaur Ji and that the attack was planned. The shooting occurred while the victims were preparing for the Vaisakhi festival, which was subsequently cancelled. Police noted that all suspects are believed to have been staying in the Antegnate comune and that one accomplice was a former president of the Sikh Center. Reports indicate Rajinder Singh had prior arguments with that man over temple management.
