Hate crime not the motive behind killing of Indian in US: India

"It was not a hate crime from any stretch of imagination. It is a case of carjacking. He (the victim) happened to be at a wrong place at a wrong time," MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

New Delhi: India on Thursday ruled out "hate crime" being the motive behind the killing of a 26-year-old Indian man in Santa Clara County of California last week.

"It was not a hate crime from any stretch of imagination. It is a case of carjacking. He (the victim) happened to be at a wrong place at a wrong time," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said, adding the government was bearing the expenses to bring the body back.

Earlier this week, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had tweeted that the culprit responsible for the killing of the Indian, Mamidala Vamshi Chander Reddy has been arrested. She had also assured all assistance to the family of the deceased.

She had said that according to the report from Indian Consulate in San Francisco, Reddy was killed by a drug addict last Friday evening at Milpitas.

According to Reddy's family, the incident happened when he was returning after completing his part-time shift at a local store in Milpitas.

Reddy had gone to California in 2013 and completed his MS in Silicon Valley University. While he was looking for a job in the software industry in the US, he recently took up a part-time assignment at a local store.