The Indianapolis skyline By C. Morgan Engel/Getty Images

By Talya Zax February 27, 2022

Two people were wounded in a shooting at Indianapolis’ Jewish Community Center Saturday afternoon that police said they do not believe was a hate crime.

The shooting, which took place in the center’s athletic complex around 2 p.m. EST, is instead thought to be related to a basketball game that turned contentious. As IndyStar reported, a 14-year-old witness said the five-on-five matchup had involved “a lot of arguing, a lot of trash-talking.”

Both victims were in stable condition on Saturday evening.

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After the incident, Shane Foley, a lieutenant with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, emphasized to reporters that there was no apparent reason to suspect the shooting was motivated by antisemitism.

At this time, IMPD does not believe this shooting was religiously motivated or in any way connected with a hate crime. https://t.co/C6o8YQxRgO

— IMPD (@IMPDnews) February 26, 2022

The teenage witness told IndyStar that they had never before seen the suspected shooter on the premises. According to the witness, the suspect fired three shots just before leaving the gym.

“”Everyone was just running out the building,” the witness said.

Police are searching for the suspect.

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