A 41-year-old man wielding a meat cleaver in a Sikh temple in Ohio was on Thursday shot dead by police after he refused to drop the weapon, officials said.
The man identified as Ravinder Najjar of Bedford, Ohio was shot after men at the Guru Gobind Singh Sikh Temple flagged down a police officer on patrol complaining that he was chasing around two priests with a 10—12 inches long meat cleaver.
Upon entering the temple, police noticed Najjar coming down some steps brandishing the cleaver. He approached them and was shot when he kept moving towards them despite a warning not to do so.
“The officer yelled, ‘Stop, drop the knife, drop the knife,’” Bedford Police Chief Greg Duber told the WOIO—TV. .
“The individual kept coming toward him and he shot him.”
A total of five shots were fired, three of which hit Najjar. He was pronounced dead at the Bedford Medical Center.
The officer was placed on the standard three—day administrative leave.
Najjar was a member of the temple but had no religious motivation for his threatening behaviour, Mr. Duber said. Temple member Baltek Singh termed the incident “disturbing“.
“It happened in a place of worship. It is even disturbing for anyone or everyone,” he said.
Najjar, who has a police record, was arrested in 2008 for disorderly conduct. He had been involved in incidents of intoxication, fighting and acting strangely. While in jail, he was even referred for a mental—health consultation.
