The older of two sons charged with murdering
their parents at their home in California said he shot his
father multiple times, but he did not shoot his mother,
according to police.
Hasib Golamrabbi, 22, also said a stranger who assaulted
him told him to shoot his father, San Jose police Sergeant
Patrick Guire said in court documents accompanying a
criminal complaint filed on Friday.
Guire said Golamrabbi's younger brother, Omar, told
investigators that Hasib Golamrabbi killed both parents,
and then asked him to check the garage where his father
was killed to make sure no blood was seeping out before
the two drove off to an anime convention in Oakland. The
younger brother did not mention a stranger, according to
Guire.
The police statement did not include a motive.
The brothers were arraigned on two counts of murder
each in the slayings of their parents, father Golam Rabbi
and mother Shamima Rabbi. The parents had emigrated
from Bangladesh decades ago.
Community shock
Omar Golamrabbi is 17, but he was charged as an adult.
They both pleaded not guilty, said Santa Clara County
district attorney's office spokesperson Sean Webby.
The parents were shot to death on Saturday at their San
Jose home.
Relatives spoke to the brothers on Sunday, requesting
they come home because their parents were not
responding to phone calls or knocks on the door, Guire
said.
But then the brothers stopped answering their phones.
Relatives went to the home and discovered the bodies,
Guire said.
Hasib Golamrabbi told the San Francisco Chronicle in a
jailhouse interview that he is eager to tell the real story
but offered no other details. He emphasised that his
brother is innocent.
"I want everyone to know what happened, but I can't say
anything without a lawyer," he said.
It was not immediately known who their attorneys were.
Omar Golamrabbi told police he closed the curtains after
his brother killed their father, and his brother then killed
their mother, Guire said.
Guire said police found writing on the walls of the home,
one set of which was consistent with Omar Golamrabbi's
writing that investigators found in a notebook.
The double slaying and the arrest of the sons have
horrified the tight-knit Muslim community.
A prayer service was planned for the parents.
The victims were popular fixtures at their mosque for
three decades and had helped relatives emigrate from
their native Bangladesh. Golam Rabbi was an engineer.
His wife was an accountant.
"This is one of those tragedies nobody ever wants to be
in," said mosque spokesperson Faisal Yazadi. "All we can
do is pray."