5 months ago
Two men robbed a Macon gas station late Sunday night and fatally shot a clerk as they escaped.
Macon police Sgt. Melanie Hofmann says the two robbers took cash from the Chevron station at 1257 Riverside Drive in Macon. It happened around 10 p.m.
A police report says one robber fired a rifle shot at 29-year-old Dipak Patel in front of three witnesses including another clerk.
The robbers were last seen running toward Monroe Street.
Friends said Patel's immediate family lives in India.
Members of Macon's Indian-American community gathered at the gas station Monday to raise money to send to Patel's mother in India. By Monday afternoon, they said they raised about $6,000 and planned to raise more at the Hindu temple Patel attended in Macon.
"It kind of clicks everybody's mind at the same time that this is what we should do," said Poonam Patel, one of the fundraisers. "It's like an emergency, when something happens you think of calling 911."
A family friend, Raj Patel, said Dipak Patel had lived in the U.S. for about two years, most of that time with an uncle in Boston, before moving to Macon.
Those who knew Patel describe him as quiet but hard-working. They said that raising money for his family overseas is something he would have wanted because he was the only one supporting his mother back home in India.
"Now she's the only one left behind," said Poonam Patel. "It's very important that as a community we gather some funds to take of her living, medicine, and on-going expenses."
Macon police spokeswoman Sgt. Melanie Hofmann said there was a robbery at the same gas station earlier this year and three robberies there in 2008.
Macon Police are asking for help in solving this crime. Anyone with information is asked to call Macon Regional Crimestoppers at 1-877-68-CRIME.
