Man convicted of 'Sept 11 race killing'

A man who shot dead a Sikh petrol station owner in a racially motivated attack following the September 11 suicide hijackings, was today facing a possible death sentence after being convicted in the US of first-degree murder.

Frank Silva Roque was also convicted of attempted first-degree murder, drive-by shooting and endangerment by the Maricopa County Superior Court jury in Mesa, Arizona yesterday.

Roque could receive the death penalty when sentenced by the jury.

Roque fatally shot Balbir Singh Sodhi in front of the petrol station the Indian immigrant owned on September 15, 2001, four days after the terrorist attacks on the Pentagon in Washington and the World Trade Centre in New York.

Prosecutors said Roque targeted the man because he believed Mr Sodhi was from the Middle East.

Mr Sodhi’s family said they were pleased with the verdict.

“I believe in the jury system. America wants justice. We showed the world we can’t have hate crimes in our community,” said the murdered man’s brother, Lakhwinder Singh Sodhi.

Another brother, Harjit Singh Sodhi, said people must be better educated to avoid misunderstandings and the death of innocent people.

Roque’s lawyers had argued that their client was insane at the time of the shooting and that the crime was not racially motivated.

During closing arguments on Monday, defence lawyer Dan Patterson said Roque suffered from mental illness his entire life and didn’t start using racial slurs until after the terrorist attacks.

Roque was hysterical after September 11 and was incoherent following the shooting of Mr Sodhi, he said.

But prosecutor Vince Imbordino argued that Roque was motivated by anger and hatred, not insanity. He noted that Roque took the time to practice shooting and reloading his weapons before killing Mr Sodhi.

After the killing, Roque allegedly shot at another petrol station where the clerk was a man of Lebanese descent and at the home of an Afghan family. No one else was injured.