Apr 12, 2010

Police shoot Sikh at Gurudwara of Greater Cleveland

It was reported that a Bedford Police officer shot and killed a Sikh at Gurudwara of Great Cleveland.  Ravinder Nijjar of Bedford was observed brandishing a meat cleaver at Guru Gobind Singh Gurudwara of Greater Cleveland located at 38 Tarbell Avenue in Bedford.

Ravinder Nijjar

Michael Sangiacomo of the Plain Dealer writes,
Duber said the officer told cleaver-wielding Nijjar to stop two times before shooting him inside the Guru Gobind Singh Gurudwara of Greater Cleveland temple. Duber said Nijjar was only 11 feet away when the officer shot him.  Police said the incident started around 4:30 a.m. when two members of the temple stopped a police cruiser and said there was a man with a knife inside the temple. The men said there were two other members also inside.
"Two police officers entered the temple, with the two members," Duber said. "One officer went up a flight of stairs and the other officer went down. The officer who went downstairs into a hallway when Nijjar came down another flight of stairs toward him with the cleaver.
"The officer said 'drop the knife' twice, but the man continued walking toward him," Duber continued. "The officer shot him."

Nijjar was pronounced dead at 5:10 a.m. at the Bedford Medical Center.
Duber said police are trying to determine what happened and why Nijjar went to the temple.