Police say they have “followed countless leads and gathered considerable evidence,” according to an update released this afternoon.
Officials say they encourage anyone with information on the case to call the police tipline at (513) 759-7272 or use the online crime tip form on the township's website.
“The victims and their families are on our minds every step of the way in this investigation,” West Chester police Chief Joel Herzog said in a news release. “This case will continue to be our top priority until those who committed this crime are held accountable.”
MORE COVERAGE
• Coroner IDs victims of West Chester quadruple homicide
• What happened in the first 24 hours
• Religious leader: Man killed in West Chester quadruple homicide 'was a great guy'
INITIAL REPORT
West Chester Twp. police are continuing to search for a suspect in the shooting deaths of four people in an apartment on Sunday night.
Here’s what we know today:
THE VICTIMS
The Butler County coroner’s office released the identifications on Tuesday afternoon.
- Shalinderjit Kaur, female, 39
- Amarjit Kaur, female, 58
- Parmjit Kaur, female, 62
- Hakiakat Singh Pannag, male, 59
MOTIVE ADDRESSED
A West Chester spokesperson and an Indian government official both released statements on Tuesday indicating this incident is not being investigated as a hate crime.
The Indian Minister of External Affairs tweeted on Tuesday that the victims included “an Indian national on a visit to US while others were persons of Indian origin” and that the incident “is not a hate crime.”
A West Chester spokesperson also released a statement on Tuesday that indicated the township has received many questions about the victims’ faith and nationality but that “there is no reason to believe that this is a hate crime.”
WHAT POLICE ARE SAYING
Police did not make any statements about their investigation on Tuesday, and the last statements came during a news conference held by police chief Joel Herzog on Monday.
Barb Wilson, the township spokesperson, said Tuesday afternoon there are no suspects, but the township has continued to say they don’t believe anyone else is in danger.
WHAT NEIGHBORS ARE SAYING
Neighbors in the apartment complex watched a Bureau of Criminal Investigation dive team search a pond behind the apartment where the bodies were found.
Rick Karvosky lives about a few dozen feet away from the lake where investigators were searching on Tuesday and “could see them holding something, carrying something up the the shore and they put it in a white bucket.”“They picked something up, and they took a bunch of measurements,” he said. “One of the guys was walking with a metal detector and all of a sudden looked up and shouted, and everybody rushed towards him.”
