Swaraj vows help to slain youth’s kin

New Delhi, November 17

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has said that the Union Government is following up the murder case of Banga resident Dharampreet Singh and will extend all help to his family.

“I have received a detailed report on the unfortunate death of an Indian student in California. It was a case of an armed robbery at a gas station in which the robbers shot Dharampreet, who was working there,” Swaraj said in a series of tweets.

“The police have arrested a suspect of Indian origin. We are following up further investigation by the police,” she tweeted.

On Monday night, 20-year-old Dharampreet was robbed before being shot dead outside the Madera city limits, local daily Fresnobee reported. He was on duty at a grocery store next to a gas station in Fresno city. He was a student of accounting and had gone to the US around three years ago on a student visa.

The police arrested Amritraj Singh Athwal (22) for the murder when he was stopped by a Fresno County sheriff’s deputy shortly after the shooting. Another suspect is at large.

Madera County Sheriff Jay Varney said Athwal faced robbery and murder charges. “Dharampreet was a completely innocent victim, just doing his job, when he was senselessly killed during this robbery,” Varney said. — Agencies