Ahmedabad: A 31 year old non resident Gujarati businessman has been shot dead by unidentified looters in San Luis city of the state of Arizona in the US.

This is first unfortunate incident of the murder of a non-resident Gujarati on foreign soil this year.

Maulik Patel (31), a native of Kalol in Gujarat, who ran a departmental store in San Luis was shot at by unidentified looters while he was on his way back to home after closing the shop last night. He used to live with his family in a suburb there, his relatives here said today

This is first murder of a Gujarati on foreign soil and the US. However four Gujaratis lost their lives on January 3 in a road mishap in Johannesburg in South Africa.

In last two years over 25 persons of Gujarti origin have been killed on foreign soil of whom most were killed in the US.

In November last year a native of Bhuj was killed in Kenya while in October a man from Mahesana who also ran a departmental store in the US was found murdered.

DeshGujarat