A Sikh truck driver was stabbed 17 times inside a restroom at a Wyoming rest stop, with a suspect arrested and charged with attempted first-degree murder, according to local authorities. The attack took place early on September 13 at the Bitter Creek Rest Area along Interstate 80, while the driver was travelling towards Pennsylvania.
This comes days after the DHS posted a racist poster calling on illegal immigrants to self deport. “Get off our roads, you don’t know how to drive Mr. Singh,” it read.
What Happened At The Wyoming Rest Stop?
According to reports based on the victim's account and police information, the driver had stopped at the rest area when another man followed him into the bathroom. The attacker allegedly assaulted him and stabbed him repeatedly before fleeing in a truck.
The injured driver managed to get outside and seek help. A family at the rest area helped him and provided information about the suspect's vehicle to authorities. Wyoming Highway Patrol officers subsequently stopped the truck near Rawlins and arrested Andrew Kris Bzdak. He faces an attempted first-degree murder charge.
The driver, who has been identified publicly only by his surname, Singh, was taken to hospital. " I don't know why this happened," he said from his hospital room, as quoted by NPR. "I don't know why they attack[ed] me."
Why Has The Attack Raised Concerns Among Sikhs?
Sikh community representatives and US lawmakers have raised concerns about whether the stabbing could have been influenced by anti-Sikh or anti-South Asian hostility. However, authorities have not established a motive and have not publicly classified the attack as a hate crime.
US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned the stabbing and linked it to what he described as rising hostility towards Sikh and South Asian Americans. DHS, however, rejected attempts to connect its earlier post to the Wyoming attack, calling such a link “reckless and false”.
"I'm horrified by the brutal attack on a Sikh truck driver who was stabbed 17 times at a Wyoming rest stop,” he said, as reported by Public Now.
"Those spreading this hate, including officials in our own federal government, need to stop. Those who turn it into violence must be held accountable. And all of us need to stand together against both. America must be better than this. I'm praying for Mr. Singh's full recovery and grateful to the family whose quick action helped save his life," he added.
