Adam Purinton, charged in the Olathe Austins bar shootings, appears in Division 8 at the Johnson County District Courthouse in Olathe, Kan. (David Eulitt/The Kansas City Star)
Adam Purinton, the suspect in a February shooting at an Olathe, Kansas, bar, now faces federal hate crime charges, the Justice Department announced Friday.
A grand jury indicted Purinton, 52, for shooting and killing Srinivas Kuchibhotla due to his race, color, religion, and national origin.
He was also charged with the attempted murder of Alok Madasani for the same reasons.
Kuchibhotla and Madasani, both 32, were Indian nationals working as engineers at Garmin. They visited a bar close to their work the night of Feb. 22 to watch a college basketball game.
The shooting garnered national attention, compelling President Donald Trump to condemn the incident as a hate crime.
According to court documents, Purinton made racist comments to the two men before leaving the bar. Madasani said Purinton asked them if they were legal residents.
Purinton later returned, allegedly shooting the two and Ian Grillot, 24, a local man who tried to stop him.
Purinton was arrested at an Applebee’s in Clinton, Missouri, after he allegedly told one of the staff members that he had killed two Iranian men in a bar.
He is currently held at the Johnson County Jail in Olathe on a $2 million bond.
His first court appearance is scheduled for August, although his attorney has asked for more time to gather evidence for his defense.
© Courthouse News Service