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Two relatives of Singh who attended his court appearance said he had been in Branford since Sunday for a family wedding, the New Haven Register reported. His three children were with him there.
A public defender who represented Singh at the hearing said he desired to waive extradition. Singh did not enter a plea, but the public defender indicated Singh told him he was innocent of the charges, according to the New Haven Register.
Singh, 37, was arrested in a Connecticut parking lot Tuesday afternoon.
After signing arrest warrants on Singh for multiple counts of aggravated murder, West Chester police notified Branford (Connecticut) police that Singh was staying in a residence there. He was located and apprehended in a parking lot of Walmart, according to the Branford Police.
Singh is the man who called 911 on the night of April 28 screaming that he had found his family dead, according to West Chester Police Chief Joel Herzog.
Singh is accused of the killing his wife, Shalinderjit Kaur, 39; his in-laws, Hakikat Singh Pannag, 59, and Parmjit Kaur, 62; and his aunt by marriage, Amarjit Kaur, 58, at their apartment on Wyndtree. All died of gunshot wounds.
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According to court documents, the victims were all shot in the head with a 9mm handgun. Police have declined to elaborate on the weapon or weapons involved in the shooting. Police searched a pond at the apartment complex on Wyndtree Dive and did recover evidence, but they have also declined to say if it was the murder weapon.
The charges are based “on observations of officers, physical evidence, statements of witnesses and statements of the offender,” according to court documents.
“This is a heinous crime that greatly impacted the West Chester community and specifically the Sikh community. This has been a complex investigation with many hours invested from law enforcement around the world,” Herzog said.
Ajaib Singh, elder brother to Amarjit Kaur, younger brother to Parmjit Kaur, maternal uncle to Shalinderjit and brother-in-law to Hakikat Singh Panag, issued a statement after the arrest.
“On behalf of my broad family and friends, we are very thankful to West Chester police department for making an arrest in connection with murders of our relatives. We are also thankful to Ohio state, Federal and other law enforcement agencies who participated in the investigation. We highly appreciate Sikh community of greater Cincinnati who helped police in the investigation. We have full faith in Chief Herzog’s team, and pray for murder convictions in the court,” he said.
Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said the crime carries the possibility of the death penalty the will be considered by a Butler County grand jury.
West Chester officials declined to say when Singh would be transported back to Ohio.
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