New York: Indian-origin man in US kills brother, injures mother, over financial issues

A 33-year-old Indian-origin man in New York fatally shot his younger brother and injured his mother before taking his own life, reportedly due to family tensions over financial issues.

Karamjit Multani, 33, shot his 27-year-old brother, Vipanpal Multani, nine times in their Richmond Hill home on Saturday night. Their mother, who was also shot in the stomach while trying to protect Vipanpal, survived the attack.

Karamjit, after shooting his brother and mother, ran down the street, removed his turban, and shot himself in the head, according to the New York Post.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) revealed that Karamjit had left a detailed, prolonged text message to his wife, outlining his grievances with his family.

Karamjit expressed feeling ridiculed over his financial struggles and the failure of his grocery store in Indiana, which contrasted with Vipanpal’s successful deli (a store where ready-to-eat food products are sold) business in Valley Stream.

“There was some indication that he made his son a sheikh [religious title] where apparently the only person supposed to do that is the eldest male in the family, which would have been the father,” explained NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny, reported the New York Post.

“But they were fighting about that and fighting about financial problems and fighting about the preferential treatment he felt his brother was getting because he was more successful,” Kenny added.

The father of the Multani brothers gifted both sons money and property to start their businesses. While Vipanpal’s deli thrived, Karamjit’s grocery store failed, leading to ongoing tensions.

On the night of the shooting, upset by his father’s demand to leave, Karamjit, elder brother, sent his wife and three children back to Indiana.

As the family was having dinner, an argument erupted, causing them to go their separate ways.

At around 10:30 pm, Karamjit entered Vipanpal’s room and shot him without warning. Their father, Bhupinder Multani, managed to escape and sought help from a neighbour who called 911.

The neighbour, who found Vipanpal shot nine times, pleaded for help.

“He told me, ‘Please, don’t let me die.’ He died in my hands later,” said neighbour, reported CBS news.

Neighbours described Karamjit as a “nice, cool guy” who showed no signs of aggression.

Family friend Mandeep told the New York Post that the murder-suicide was “out of the blue”.

Earlier, Karamjit’s father told CBS News, “There weren’t big problems. Just small disagreements [between his sons], nothing major.”