In a bizzare incident, an Indian-American social entrepreneur was stabbed with a screwdriver on October 16 following an argument near a Hookah Lounge in Texas.
Police said that “the incident took place when Ikvinder Pabla (21) went to Cloud Nine Hookah Lounge in Richardson, along with his girlfriend and accompanied by other friends.”
Pabla’s sister, Gurpreet Pabla, told India-West in an exclusive interview that “her brother and his girlfriend stepped out of the lounge at about 3:30 a.m. Pabla stepped to one side of the parking lot to make a phone call, and his girlfriend went to another side with some friends. She was then approached by three other men. A friend of Pabla’s intervened due to which one of the men, picked up a bottle and smashed on his head, taking him down.”
She said that “Pabla saw the fight and attempted to intervene. The trio then started to punch him and knocked him to the ground. One man returned to his car, and got a screwdriver, and started stabbing Pabla in the arm, leg, stomach, and heart. He left the screwdriver in Pabla’s heart. Several people watched , but none of them intervened. Pabla was still conscious after the attack. A club bouncer called the police and told Pabla to walk over and sit down, but lost consciousness when police and emergency personnel arrived.”
Gurpreet Pabla said “Pabla had no oxygen or blood flow for about six minutes. His ribs were cracked open so that his heart could be manually pumped. He was admitted to the Plano Medical Center in Plano, Texas. He is currently on a ventilator in the ICU and is being fed through a tube. There is no evidence of brain activity, according to Gurpreet, who said her brother has gone through multiple surgeries.
Ikvinder Pabla has founded an organization named Laker. This organization provides free trees to India, the U.S., China and Brazil.
Gurpreet Pabla told India-West that “the Richardson, Texas Police Department did not contact her family. They later found out about it from friends five hours after the attack. At the scene, police arrested Ahmad Walid Kadhim and booked him on simple assault with a bail of $5,000. Kadhim was later released on a bond of $500.”
Sgt. Kevin Perlich, of the Richardson, Texas Police Department, told India-West that “Kadhim was booked on simple assault because he wasn’t accused of anything more than simply hitting someone.”
Perlich said “detectives are still investigating who inflicted the wounds on Pabla. There were numerous people in the parking lot. We know that some of them had armed themselves with various weapons and there was more than one altercation,” he said, adding that “investigators are in the process of interviewing numerous people who were out there”.
Perlich added “the investigation is open and ongoing. I cannot confirm the extent of the injuries, but cited the police report, which indicated Pabla had received several stab wounds that require hospitalization.”
Gurpreet Pabla said “Khadim and the other alleged attackers are from a wealthy Iraqi family. She fears they will flee the country before the investigation is completed. I took several witnesses to the police station, but was summarily dismissed for interfering with the investigation.”
Perlich said, “I cannot comment on Gurpreet’s allegations, but several witnesses have been interviewed.”
A close friend of the family who asked not to be identified, told India-West: “There is definitely some negligence on the part of the police. A man is in critical condition. Why isn’t this a top priority?”
Pabla’s friends and family members are very upset that the main accused Kadhim is free on a very low bail amount. They have even created a gofundme page to get his medical expenses.
Pabla is a student at Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas. He has no medical insurance. His medical bills are expected to be more than thousands dollars.
Gurpreet said “my brother is studying business administration and also plays kabaddi competitively. She has asked anyone with information about the incident, or the alleged perpetrator, to call Richardson, Texas police.”
BY M. DIVYA SRI
