Suresh Patel, the 56-year-old man from Gujarat who was allegedly shot dead by an unidentified person on the night of August 20 inside his store in Jackson, Tennessee, United States, was a native of Akhaj village of Mehsana district and had taken over the liquor store only a week ago, said a local leader from his home village on Sunday.

Patel’s 19-year-old daughter was present at the store when the alleged incident took place, the leader added.

A resident of Akhaj village in Mehsana taluka, Dinesh Suthar said, “Suresh Patel had migrated to the United States years ago. He was the youngest of the six brothers. His parents are no more and all other family members are settled in the US.”

Suthar, a sitting member of Mehsana Taluka Panchayat from Akhaj village, added, “Suresh was running a store in Chicago and he had started a new liquor store in Jackson city just seven days back. The incident took place at the time of closing the store. Since his entire family is in the US, the funeral rites will be carried out there.”

Suthar said that there are many people from Mehsana who are settled in the US and he got to know about Patel’s murder through those circles.

According to WBBJ7, a West Tennessee news channel, Patel had taken over ‘Ridgecrest Cellars Wine & Spirits’ as its new owner only last Monday. The shooting is still under investigation, the channel said on Sunday.

As per a release on the Facebook page of City of Jackson Police Department on Saturday, the incident happened on August 20.

“At approximately 9:00 p.m., officers responded to a call regarding a robbery and shooting in the business. According to witnesses, an unidentified suspect entered the establishment, brandished a weapon, and demanded cash from the employees. After taking the money from the employee, the suspect fired multiple shots, striking one of the store employees. The victim was found deceased and identified as Suresh Patel, a 56-year-old man,” it stated.

“The suspect was described as a black male wearing a gray hoodie, jeans, and black work-style boots. His face was covered with a paintball-style mask, and he was seen fleeing the business in a white sedan,” the statement added.