Oklahoma executes man for shooting dead Indian student 22 years ago

A 41-year-old man was executed in the US for shooting dead two people, including an Indian national, in Oklahoma. The fatal shootings took place 22 years ago. The 24-year-old Indian was in the US for education and had a bright future ahead of him. He was described as a “smart young man with a kind heart”.

The execution of Michael Dewayne Smith was carried out through lethal injection on Thursday at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester for the 2002 shooting deaths.

Sharath Pulluru, a 24-year-old Indian student working as a store clerk, and Janet Moore, 40, were killed by Smith.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond released a statement on Smith’s execution on Thursday, saying, “I pray that today brings some measure of peace for the families of Janet Miller-Moore and Sharath Pulluru. The victims of Michael Smith were good and decent people who did not deserve their fate,” as reported by KOCO News.

Drummond praised Sharath Pulluru’s character, saying he was a “smart young man with a kind heart” who came to the United States to study and had a bright future ahead.

He also expressed sadness about the meaningless killings.

“They were killed simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Drummond.

Last month, Sharath’s brother, Harish Pulluru, strongly opposed granting any leniency to Smith, highlighting the significant impact Sharath’s death had on their family.

Harish described Sharath as “a loving son, brother, and uncle” and recounted waiting in an Indian phone booth for Sharath’s calls after he moved to the United States, reported PTI.

Before his execution, Smith demanded further appeals despite new evidence, stating, “My life is on the line… I am releasing this statement to demand that Mr Henricksen do his job and fight for my life,” referring to his attorney, Mark Henricksen.