The man who shot dead six people at Oak Creek gurdwara in the US state of Wisconsin has been identified as Wade Michael Page, a 40-year-old veteran who was demoted and booted out of the US army for repeated misconduct.
Page, who lived just five miles from the gurdwara, was shot dead by police officers who reached the crime scene within minutes of the shootout, at 10.30am local time on Sunday.
"Page was in the military from 1992 to 1998," Oak Creek police chief John Edwards said. "He was given discharge and (declared) ineligible for reenlistment."
Page, believed to be a white supremacist, founded the neo-Nazi band, End Apathy. Witnesses also said he had a 9/11 tattoo. The Sikh community in the US has been at the receiving end of hate crimes in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.