A British police force is appealing for witnesses and information after a grieving Indian-origin family were racially abused while they paid tribute to a family member killed in a hit-and-run in a town in the West Midlands region of England.
Kulvinder Kaur died after being hit by a car on Cavendish Road in Walsall town last week and a 20-year-old man has since been charged with causing the 52-year-old woman's death by dangerous driving by West Midlands Police.
As Ms Kaur's family re-visited the site of the crash, days later to attend to the floral tributes left by well-wishers, a passer-by abused the family.
"Family members who had bravely returned to the scene of the collision to pay their respects were confronted with vile comments from a passer-by. Officers are investigating the ''deplorable'' crime and are asking for witnesses or anyone with information to come forward," a West Midlands Police statement said on Thursday, a week after the hit-and-run incident.
"Racial abuse is unacceptable at any time, but feels even more despicable when a family have just lost a loved one. The abuser was on foot so we believe he may be local and most likely aware of what tragically happened just two days beforehand," added Sergeant Stephen Pursglove from the local Walsall police.
"This makes it all more deplorable and we are urging anyone who can help our investigation to get in touch as soon as possible," he said.
Ms Kaur was hit by a Peugeot 206 just after 1 pm last Thursday and pronounced dead at the scene.
Lewis Jukes was arrested and charged with causing death by dangerous driving, failing to stop at the scene and other traffic offences earlier this week.