VIA FIRST CLASS MAIL

 

November 12, 2007

 

Internal Affairs Section
Arlington County Police Department
1425 North Courthouse Road
Arlington, VA 22201

 

To Whom it May Concern:

 

I am writing on behalf of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)[1] regarding the possible homicide of Mr. Simran Singh, who was found in a stopped car on the side of I-395 the night of August 3, 2007.  We are gravely concerned about the professional conduct of Arlington County Police Detective Cupka (#1048) throughout his investigation of this incident and calls for an investigation into the conduct of this officer.

 

On August 3, 2007 Mr. Singh was found on the side of I-395 in Arlington County, unconscious, bruised on his torso and neck, and with blood coming out of his ear.  In the car with Mr. Singh on the side of I-395 were four other individuals, who had allegedly been with him the entire night, and who were released early Saturday without any toxicology reports. 

 

When Mr. Singh returned home on the night of August 2, 2007 after being with one of the four individuals, he was visibly bruised around the neck.  From the information we have received, it would appear that Mr. Singh was assaulted at least twice, with the injuries he sustained the night of August 3rd being fatal.

 

There have been many troubling statements and allegations made by the Arlington County Investigator to the family of Simran Singh, which have outraged the Virginia Sikh American community.  An example of a few impropriety’s are listed below:

 

  1. Detective Cupka actively denied the parents of Simran Singh the right to see the body of their son on the night of August 3, 2007 in the emergency room. This conduct directly hindered the criminal investigation because he was not identified by the family members.
    1. Simran Singh’s head was found to be shaven when the family saw his body. Simran Singh did not have a shaved head when he left his home earlier that day.  Had the family been able to view the body through the window, vital case information would have been found.

 

  1. Detective Cupka willfully disregarded a statement made by the potential murder suspect to the mother of Simran Singh that, “he [the suspect] would make sure Simran does not go to Canada.” This statement leads directly to criminal intent and was brushed off by Detective Cupka “as a joke.”

 

  1. Towards the beginning of the case, Detective Cupka directly threatened the family and family friends with arrest if they continued to ask questions about the case and their ability to see the body.  

 

  1. Detective Cupka told family members that he would not comply with any court order forcing him to allow the family to see the body of Simran Singh. This led the family to believe that he was trying to hide something in the investigation.

 

  1. On more than one occasion, Detective Cupka has encouraged the family to speak with the murder suspect about the death of their child. This has caused tremendous emotional distress for the family and is improper police conduct during a murder investigation.

 

  1. Detective Cupka willfully and on more than one occasion provided the family with information about the incident and then retracted his statements a few days later, causing grave concern about the integrity of the murder investigation among the family.

 

  1. Detective Cupka has reportedly been providing information about the status of Simran Singh’s injuries and case updates to the murder suspect BEFORE any information is provided to the victim’s family.

 

This incident has outraged the Sikh American community in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area and across the country. Serious questions about the manner in which this investigation has been conducted remain. 

 

We hope your office responds to this incident and initiates a formal investigation into the conduct of Arlington County Detective Cupka.

[1] Founded in 1996 SALDEF is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit civil rights and education organization that seeks to educate society about the Sikh religion and culture while empowering Sikh Americans to fully participate in all facets of American life.  Sikhism is a distinct religious faith that is over five hundred years old.  There are approximately half a million Sikhs living in the United States.