Police in a Chicago suburb said they are investigating a hate crime attack that began as road rage.
Police didn’t detail specifics of the crime, but a Sikh organization said in a statement that Sikh American Inderjit Singh Mukker was assaulted by a suspect in Darien.
The Sikh Coalition said in the statement that a confrontation occurred when Mukker, a cab driver and father of two, turned onto Cass Avenue to go to a grocery store. A suspect pulled up along Mukker and yelled "terrorist," and "Bin Laden," the coalition said.
Mukker pulled over to let him pass, but the suspect also stopped, according to the coalition.
Mukker's car window was down when the suspect "began beating and punching him in the face ferociously," Sikh Coalition Legal Director Harsimran Kaur told NBC Chicago. "
"It's very frightening he had broken cheek bones," said Mukker's father, Sadhu Singh Rihiraj. "He couldn't see anything."
Kaur added that Mukker was likely targeted because he was wearing articles of his faith.
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The victim was treated and released from Hinsdale hospital.
No charges have been filed in the attack, according to police, who added that the 17-year-old suspect is at a local hospital for an unknown reason.
Police also said they have spoken to the Sikh Coalition to assure them that they will deliver a thorough investigation.
