Bangladeshi expat imam, aide shot dead in New York

A Bangladeshi imam and his assistant were shot dead by a gunman in New York on Saturday.

The two Bangladeshi expatriates were identified as Alauddin Akonjee, 55, imam of Al-Furqan Jame Mosque in Ozone Park, and his associate Tara Uddin, 64.

Alauddin from Habiganj left for the US six years back to stay with four of his sons living there, said his relatives in Habiganj.

He was supposed to visit his 90-year-old mother at his ancestral home in Chunarughat next month, according to them.

Alauddin's son Faizuddin Akonjee told BBC Bangla last night that he thinks his father was a victim of “planned killing”.

Tara Mia of Gopalganj in Sylhet, along with his wife and children, went to the US four and a half years back to settle there.   

According to a Reuters report, a lone gunman approached the two from behind and shot both in the head at close range around 1:50pm (local time) when they were walking together following afternoon prayers at a mosque in Ozone Park neighbourhood in the New York City borough of Queens.

They were transported to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and they died "while life-saving procedures were being performed," said Andrew Rubin, a hospital spokesman.

Bangladesh's State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam condemned the killing, and termed it “a cowardly act on peace-loving people”.

On her Twitter page, US Ambassador in Dhaka Marcia Bernicat condemned the murders, and said Imam Alauddin Akonjee “stood for peace”.

“We join Bangladeshis to condemn his killing and honor what he stood for,” she wrote.

“Violence can never be the solution,” added the US diplomat.

Police were yet to make any arrests or learn the motive behind the shooting.

The New York City police last night released a sketch of the suspect.

No evidence has been uncovered that the two men were targeted because of their faith, but police didn't rule out any possibility, said Tiffany Phillips, a spokeswoman for the NY City Police Department.

Both the victims were wearing religious garb at the time of shooting.

Police sources said they have witnesses who saw the killer holding a gun, as well as security video of the shooter following the imam and his friend. The footage then captures the man sprinting back, this time with a gun in his hand.

A police source told the New York Daily News that the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force would investigate, but it was “too early to say” what the motive was behind the shooting.

A second source said the investigators were looking into the possibility of a botched robbery because one of the men was found carrying several hundred dollars.

"We are currently conducting an extensive canvass of the area for video and additional witnesses," Deputy Inspector Henry Sautner said in a statement.

“The perpetrator of these senseless killings must be swiftly apprehended and face the full force of the law,” Afaf Nasher, executive director of the Muslim advocacy group's New York chapter, said in a statement.

MUSLIM COMMUNITY HOLDS RALLY

According to AP, more than a hundred people attended a rally at the shooting site on Saturday night and shouted, "We want justice."

"We feel really insecure and unsafe in a moment like this," Millat Uddin, an Ozone Park resident told CBS New York.

"It's really threatening to us, threatening to our future, threatening to our mobility in our neighborhood, and we're looking for justice."

According to an AP report, Sarah Sayeed, who serves as a liaison to Muslim communities, said, "I understand the fear because I feel it myself. I understand the anger. But it's very important to mount a thorough investigation."

Millat Uddin, who offers prayers at the mosque, said Akonjee had led the mosque for about two years and was a very pious man.

"The community's heart is totally broken," added Millat.

Local resident Khairul Islam, 33, said, “That's not what America is about.”

In the US, there has been an average of 12.6 suspected anti-Muslim hate crimes a month in recent years, according to an analysis of FBI statistics, but that number appeared to spike late last year, The New York Times reported.

Our correspondent from Sylhet reports, locals in Habiganj town yesterday brought out a procession after Asr prayers, demanding justice for the two slain Bangladeshis.