A Bharatiya-origin motel owner in the US State of Alabama was shot dead by a customer following an argument over a rental room.
According to local media reports, ‘Pravin Raojibhai Patel, 76, was the owner of the Hillcrest Motel in Sheffield and was shot dead last week’.
‘William Jeremy Moore, 34, was arrested for the shooting of Patel’, according to Sheffield Police Chief Ricky Terry. Moore came to the property looking to rent a room, after which an altercation occurred and Moore pulled a gun and shot the motel owner, Terry said.
“Moore was quickly apprehended by Sheffield Police on 13th Avenue when he was trying to break into an abandoned house,” he added.
The murder weapon was found in Moore’s possession when he was arrested. A felony complaint states Patel tried to get Moore to leave before the shooting. Moore started to leave when he then turned and shot Patel twice in the chest.
“I heard three gunshots. I can’t believe it; he was just doing his job,” said Jemeriz Owens, a barber working across the street, who was left shaken after witnessing the aftermath of the shooting.
Additionally, Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) in a statement said America’s hotel owners are deeply saddened, shocked, and outraged by this senseless act of violence against a small business owner that cost him his life.
“No family should have to endure what Pravin’s family is going through, and we send our condolences to everyone who knew and loved him,” said the association. AAHOA Alabama Regional Director Sanjay M Patel said Pravin Patel spent more than four decades in the town of Sheffield, owning and operating the same motel.
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