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Motel owner shot in the head in Pittsburg: 'Are you alright?' he asked the shooter

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A 51-year-old motel owner in Robinson was shot in the head when he stepped outside of his motel to check on a dispute reportedly going on at the parking lot. Police identified the motel owner as Rakesh Ehagaban who died at the spot. The shooter, identified as Stanley Eugene West, a 37-year-old man, shot him in the head when Rakesh asked him: "Are you alright, bud?"

Rakesh responded to a situation that arose when West shot his female companion. West also shot a cop who tracked him to the East Hills of Pittsburgh after he left the motel. Both the woman and the police were taken to a hospital. West was staying in a room at the motel in Robinson, police said. He also is associated with a residence on Page Street on Pittsburgh’s North Side.

According to the arrest papers, Robinson police were dispatched to the Dick Kernick Tire & Auto Service Center at about 1 p.m. where West’s female companion had driven after being shot in the neck while she was sitting in a car in the motel parking lot. The woman had a child with her who was not injured.



Police said the woman was attempting to drive away from the motel Friday and, as her black sedan began to move forward toward the exit, West approached the driver’s side door and shot at the sedan, shattering the driver’s door window. That incident is what drew Rakesh outside where he was shot, according to police.

After shooting Ehagaban, the shooter walked away nonchalantly.

“The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police is grateful to the incredible care provided by the doctors and nurses at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital and to all of our local law enforcement partners who work so hard to keep Allegheny County safe in the fight against violent crime,” acting Chief Martin Devine said in the statement.
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