Kansas shooting: Gunman thought he'd shot 'two Iranians'

In the high-profile case that is being investigated as a possible hate crime, it has been revealed that the man accused of shooting two technology workers from India and another man at a bar in Kansas last week, had opened fire thinking they were Iranian nationals.

Adam Purinton, 51, faces one charge of first-degree murder and two charges of attempted first-degree murder in last Wednesday's shooting in Olathe that killed one person and injured two others.

CNN affiliate KSHBreleased 911 calls in which an Applebee's bartender told the police that a man had admitted to shooting two "Iranian" people in Olathe and was looking for a place to hide. Purinton was arrested hours later at an Applebee's restaurant in Clinton, Missouri, about 70 miles away from Olathe.

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A witness of the shooting Jeremy Luby told CNN that the incident began after a man became agitated with Srinivas Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani, at Austins Bar & Grill.Ian Grillot, a regular at the bar, approached the man and asked him to leave.

"He said (to Grillot), 'Why are you standing up for them?' He emphasised 'them,' as if 'them' was a derogatory term," Luby told CNN. The suspect left the bar and drove away, according to Grillot.

He allegedly returned later and allegedly opened fire in the bar.

(ANI)