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Death Sentence Given in 9/11-Related Murder

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From Times Wire Reports

A man was sentenced to death for killing an Indian immigrant during a rampage four days after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Frank Silva Roque was convicted of murder in Mesa in the death of Balbir Singh Sodhi, who wore a turban and beard as part of his Sikh faith. Prosecutors said Sodhi was targeted because Roque thought he was an Arab.

Roque then shot at a gas station where the clerk was of Lebanese descent and shot at the home of an Afghan family, officials said. There were no injuries.

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Defense attorneys argued that Roque suffered from a mental illness and that the attacks triggered an episode of insanity.

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