‘Deeply disturbing’: Cary’s Hindu temple vandalized; police seeking 5 suspects
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- Cary police are investigating vandalism at the Sri Venkateswara Temple of NC.
- The Dvarapalaka statue, a warrior deity found at the entrance, was damaged.
- Five people were captured on camera getting into a car and speeding away from the temple.
Police are investigating after a statue at a Hindu temple in Cary was vandalized last weekend.
Around 3 a.m. Sunday, surveillance cameras at the Sri Venkateswara Temple of North Carolina near downtown Cary captured images of five people leaving the area in a car and speeding away, Cary police said in a news release Thursday night.
The Dvarapalaka statue, which depicts guardian deities often found at temple entrances, was damaged. Photos show one of the arms of the statue is cut off.
The Cary Police Department is working to identify the people involved.
Cary Town Councilwoman Sarika Bansal, Cary’s first Indian-American council person, called the vandalism “deeply disturbing and completely unacceptable,” in a Facebook post.
“Cary is a diverse, inclusive, and welcoming community,” she wrote. “Acts of vandalism or hate have no place here. We stand with the SV Temple and the entire community during this difficult time.”
The Sri Venkateswara Temple serves the nearly 21,000 Hindus in the Triangle area.
Cary is home to a significant Indian and Southeast Asian population, and nearly half the residents of neighboring Morrisville are Indian and Southeast Asian.
The decade-old temple is also the largest of its kind in the United States with expansions completed in 2022 that included the addition of an 87-foot gold tower.
Other Hindu leaders have spoken out against the damage including the Hindu American Foundation. In a letter posted to X, the organization called the vandalism an “attack on a religious community.”
“We want to reassure the community that the sanctity of the temple has not been compromised,” the letter read. “Our priests and advisors are guiding us on the appropriate religious procedures, including repair.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Cary Crimestoppers at 919-460-4636 or visit p3tips.com/1242 for anonymous reporting.