Gunman kills Gujarat woman working at store in US

A masked assailant entered a supermarket in the US state of Virginia and shot dead Meghna Patel, a 47-year-old from Gujarat employed at the store, during a suspected robbery attempt.

Shot at close range, Meghna succumbed to injuries before help could arrive. A native of Jantral village in Mehsana district, she had been living in the US for 10 years with her husband Upendra Patel and two children.

The cold-blooded killing on May 23, caught on the store's surveillance cameras, has sent shockwaves in the Gujarati community in Virginia and in Meghna's native village. CCTV footage shows the masked man entering the store, briefly looking around and walking up to the counter, then pulling out a firearm concealed near his waist and firing multiple rounds, before fleeing the spot. Sources said the entire incident unfolded within 26 seconds.

Local police rushed to the scene and cordoned off the area. Investigators are examining CCTV footage and questioning witnesses to establish the motive behind the killing.

Jantral, where Meghna's parents live, has drowned in sorrow. Family members said she had moved to the US a decade ago for a better future. Her father, Karsan Patel, told TOI, "Upendra had dropped Meghna at the store 30 minutes before the shooting. The two worked in different stores to earn their livelihood."

According to him, the assailant had shot someone else, too, in the vicinity about an hour earlier. Authorities US are yet to officially disclose the exact circumstances surrounding the shooting.