Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad confirmed the arrest of a 48-year-old man, Jason Eaton, in connection with the shooting of three university students of Palestinian descent.
The incident, believed to be a hate-motivated crime, occurred outside Eaton’s apartment in Burlington, Vermont.
Investigation Details:
Evidence collected during a search of Eaton’s apartment, where the shooting took place, provided probable cause for his involvement, according to Murad.
The shooter, described earlier by police as a white man with a handgun discharged multiple rounds without verbal communication and then fled on foot.
Victims’ Condition and Background:
Two of the victims are in stable condition, while the third suffered more severe injuries. Notably, two young men wore keffiyehs, traditional Palestinian scarves.
All three victims were graduates of the Ramallah Friends School in the West Bank and were attending different universities in the northeastern United States.
Calls for Justice and Investigation:
Families of the victims called for a thorough investigation and emphasized the urgency of apprehending the shooter.
The Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee urged Vermont authorities to probe the incident as a hate crime, citing a potential bias against the victims due to their Arab heritage.
Reactions and Concerns:
The White House confirmed President Joe Biden’s briefing on the incident, while Senator Bernie Sanders condemned the attack, emphasizing the intolerance of hate.
This shooting occurred amid rising concerns about hate crimes targeting Arab and Muslim Americans, echoing previous incidents like the tragic stabbing of a Palestinian-American boy and his mother in Illinois.
