New York, USA (August 06, 2014): More than a hundred Sikhs from Richmond Hill, Ozone Park and surrounding neighborhoods gathered Tuesday (August 05) morning to demand justice for one of their own, who was nearly killed in a hit-and-run accident last week. Sikhs believe that it was yet another hate crime incident targeting Sikhs.
Sandeep Singh, 29, is recovering in the hospital from last week’s incident.
According to a news reported by Queens’ Chronicle: Sandeep Singh, 29, was standing outside his office at 99th Street and 101st Avenue in Ozone Park shortly after midnight on July 30 when an altercation occurred between him and a man driving a white pickup truck. According to a witness who was at the scene, the driver began yelling racial slurs, called victim Sandeep Singh “a terrorist” and telling him to “go back to your country.”
Sandeep Singh then stood in front of the truck to keep the man from leaving while a friend called the police, but the driver ran him over, dragging him about 30 feet eastbound on 101st Avenue. He was taken to the hospital where he remains, recovering from his injuries.
Sikhs rally at the corner where Sandeep Singh was hit by a driver in an alleged hate crime last week.
Elected officials and Sandeep Singh’s wife and brother spoke to the press at the rally Tuesday, calling on the perpetrator to be found and brought to justice, and again seeking understanding of Sikhs.
“My husband is strong,” said Prabhpreet Kaur. “He fought for his life and with God’s grace, he will survive.”
Prabhpreet Kaur said her husband told her the perpetrator used racial and ethnic slurs against him, and she believes the incident to be a hate crime. She read a statement from Sandeep Singh in which he said he was attacked for his religion and wanted to see justice serviced “so no one else goes through what I have been through.”