The deadly shooting of an Indian engineer and wounding of his co-worker last Wednesday at a bar in Kansas is being investigated as a hate crime, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said on Tuesday.


Srinivas Kuchibhotla, who was killed, and Alok Madasani, both 32, worked as engineers at U.S. company Garmin, which makes navigational devices. They were at Austins Bar and Grill in Olathe, a Kansas City suburb, when the shootings occurred.

Another man, Ian Grillot, was wounded when he chased after the accused gunman, US Navy veteran Adam Purinton, 51, who has been charged in the shootings.


"Based upon the initial investigative activity, the FBI, in conjunction with the US Attorney's Office and the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, is investigating this incident as a hate crime," the FBI said in a statement.


The agency said it would work with the Olathe Police Department and state and local partners regarding the investigation.


The Kansas City Star newspaper reported that at least one bystander said Purinton shouted "Get out of my country" before opening fire.


The shooting received international attention and in India some suggested on social media that a climate of intolerance in the United States had been fuelled by President Donald Trump's statements on immigration.White House spokesman Sean Spicer said on Friday that it was absurd to link the killing to Trump's "America First" stance.


On Tuesday, the White House said it was looking more like the shooting was based on race."As more facts come to light and it begins to look like this was an act of racially motivated hatred, we want to reiterate that the president condemns these or any other racially or religiously motivated attacks in the strongest terms," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters.
-- Reuters.