Harjinder Singh Bhurji, 32, of Ilford, east London, was stabbed to death after he refused to hand over the keys to his Mercedes.
LONDON – The Metropolitan police have arrested four men initially described in police reports as black following the murder of an Indo-British garage owner, allegedly after he refused to hand over the keys to his Mercedes.
Harjinder Singh Bhurji, 32, of Ilford, east London, died after being stabbed while sitting in the car talking to a friend.
Three suspects – aged 20, 19 and 17 – were arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of murder and a fourth man was also being questioned for handling stolen goods.
Relatives of the dead man condemned the “senseless” murder. His best friend, Gurmit Birdi, said the family was distraught. Bhurji’s uncle, Narinder Shargill, who has flown in from San Francisco to be with his relatives, said the attack was unimaginable.
The victim was in his sports car talking to a friend when a robber opened the passenger door and dragged her from the car. Bhurji is said to have attempted to hide the keys, but the robber threatened to harm the friend if he did not hand them over.
Birdi said: “He was a very nice person, he never did anything wrong. He lived his life and enjoyed his life, he was a happy person. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Shargill told ITV1’s Daybreak: “My sister got married two weeks ago so the entire family was here from all over the world. It was a time of joy and celebration. Two weeks later to be in a state of mourning is just incredible. This crime is so senseless.”
Bhurji was pronounced dead at the scene in Stoneleigh Road, Ilford, after the incident early on Tuesday. The car was found abandoned in Chingford, about seven miles away, an hour late
Bhurji was left bleeding to death from knife wounds in the road in front of the terrified passenger.
The car was found abandoned a few hours later in Chingford, the report said.
