GoFundMe campaigns for three men who were shot in an alleged hate crime have raised more than $1 million in less than a week.
Srinivas Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani were sitting in an Olathe, Kansas, bar last Wednesday when another patron, Adam Purinton, allegedly made comments about their ethnicity and immigrant status before shooting at them. Kuchibhotla was killed; Madasani survived. A third man, Ian Grillot, was also shot as he attempted to stop the shooter.
Purinton was charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder, and the FBI is looking into whether or not he can also be charged with hate crimes. Madasani told the New York Times that Purinton asked them if they were in the country illegally; in the 911 call from the woman who turned Purinton in, she said he told her he “shot and killed two Iranian people in Olathe.” Contrary to Purinton’s alleged belief, Madasani and Kuchibholta are from India, not Iran, and were in the country legally for their jobs as engineers.