Masked gunman fires shots in Australia; no one injured

Melbourne, April 18: A masked gunman on Saturday fired off eight rounds in the middle of a shopping strip in Western Sydney where most businesses are owned by Indian-Australians, prompting authorities to launch a probe into the incident.

New South Wales Police confirmed the shooting incident near a business outlet owned by an Indian-Australian in Wingram Street in Harris Park. No one was injured in the incident.

"Police from Parramatta Local Area Command are investigating reports of a public place shooting at Harris Park this afternoon," police said in a statement. "About 2.35 pm local time, police were advised that a number of shots were fired towards the business," they said.

A crime scene was immediately established with specialist investigators now in attendance, police added, without giving any further details.

According Sydney Morning Herald, a masked gunman fired off eight rounds in the middle of a shopping strip. The report said that diners were enjoying their lunch in Harris Park, western Sydney, when the masked man walked outside and fired a volley of bullets into the air before fleeing.

Most businesses are owned by Indian-Australians in Western Sydney

"My wife and I were eating at Billu's Indian restaurant when this gunman appeared out of the middle of nowhere and fired away," Ramkrishna Gudipudi, who was visiting the area for the day, was quoted in the report as saying.

"After he fled we walked over and saw eight bullets scattered all over the ground," Gudipudi said. Disturbed by the shooting, Gudipudi said: "You don't expect to be eating lunch and have bullets fired around you."

Expressing concern over the incident, Yadu Singh, a Sydney-based cardiologist and president of Indian-Australian Association of NSW, said Harris Park in western Sydney is a place where most businesses are owned by Indian-Australians.

"We are concerned about the shots being fired at a business owned by an Indian-Australian. Thankfully no one was injured," Singh said.

"At this stage, the details are not clear but we hope that NSW police will catch the perpetrator soon," he added.

PTI