HYDERABAD: The suspect in the killing of Indian student Sharath Koppu in Kansas, US, has been identified as 25-year-old Marlin Mack by Kansas city police. He was shot dead in a gun battle with the Kansas city police on July 15. No other details were provided, apart from his photograph.

Mack had fired five shots from his weapon at Sharath Koppu at J’s Fish and Chicken Market in Kansas. Koppu was from Hyderabad and a student at the University of Missouri.

The Kansas police which had surveillance footage of the suspect in J’s kept a watch and finally came face to face with him two days ago. Three police officers also received injuries when the suspect shot at them during the encounter.

In a blogpost, Kansas city police department (KCPD) chief Richard S Smith said after the video of the suspect had been released, 40 tips had come from community members and 10 of them identified the same person.

“The people of Kansas City really came together to help us solve this senseless slaying of an innocent man. I think this is proof both that the people of Kansas City will not tolerate that kind of violence and that the increased $10,000 reward for information in homicides is paying off,” he said.

The police chief spoke highly of the ‘brave and courageous officers’ who responded from all over the city, on-duty and off, even before being called. Ta

“The terror of what happened will not stop for these officers after they leave the hospital. They are husbands, fathers, sons and brothers, and their families have undergone trauma, as well. We deployed a chaplain to the hospital and to each of our urban core police stations to pray with and encourage not only the injured officers but especially our newer officers who are understandably shaken,” he said, speaking about the officers who were injured in the encounter.

