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Arizona Senator John McCain has expressed regret over the murder of a Sikh petrol pump owner, Balbir Singh Sodhi, in Mesa in the wake of the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11.
"The actions of the killer are a betrayal of everything that we stand for, and the values we have fought for centuries to defend," McCain said in a letter to H H S Viswanathan, Consul General of India, who had written to the senator after the hate murder.
"As you know, Frank Roque, the man accused of Sodhi's murder, has been taken into custody by the authorities, and the crime is being investigated by the Maricopa County Attorney. If Roque is convicted, I am confident his sentence will reflect the severity of his crime."
America, he said, was a great nation "because we are united in our diversity by the values that we share. Those of different cultures and faiths enrich our society, and we are a better nation for it".
"Sodhi's killer, and those who perpetrated the attacks in New York and Washington, represent the bigoted hatred that reminds us not only of what America is against, but what it is for -- freedom, tolerance, inclusion, and opportunity," he said.
"The American dream is big enough for all of us, as affirmed by the dynamism of the Sikh and Indian-American communities across our nation," McCain said.
The senator said he was grateful "for the Indian people's sympathy and friendship in this time of trial, as we work in concert against the enemies of freedom".
Sodhi was killed by four unidentified gunmen at his gas filling station on the night of September 15.
PTI
The Attack on America: The Complete Coverage
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