North Carolina Police are supporting the theory of the father of two Muslims gunned by a neighbor thathe act goes beyond a fight over parking space, but is a hate crime.

Dr. Mohammad Abu-Salha, the father of Yusor Abu-Salha and Raleigh, and father-in-law of Deaf Shaddy Barakat, said: "This was not a dispute over parking space, this was a hate crime. This man had picked on my daughter and her husband a couple of times before, and he talked with them with his gun in his belt," quotes Fox News.

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He cited what his daughter, the neighbor of the gunman, told him that when she wore a Muslim headscarf, the man, Craig Stephen Hicks, made her feel that "he hates us for what we are and how we look."

Hicks shot dead on Tuesday the three, who are college students. He turned himself to police in Chapel Hill. Even his Facebook post appears to support Abu-Salha's belief since he blames radical Christians and Muslims for causing strife in the world.

However, other authorities are unsure that what happened is a hate crime. U.S. Attorney Ripley Rand told media on Wednesday that there is no information that the condo parking area shooting is part of an organized event against Muslims but rather appears to be an isolated incident.

Duke University Muslim chaplain Abdullah Antepli concedes it may or may not be a hate crime, but he said the Muslim community is mourning over what happened.

Barakat was a student of dentistry at the University of North Carolina, while the two women were students at the North Carolina State University. Abu-Salha said that they were killed execution style since the gun was aimed at their heads.

The sisters were taking up biological sciences and architecture and environmental design. Barakat and 10 other dental students at the university were scheduled to hold dental mission clinics in Turkey in summer for Syrian refugees.

The university said in a statement, "We are sensitive to the impact an incident of this nature has on campus and in the community. We understand you want to know the facts as quickly as possible. At the same time, we must respect the job our Chapel Hill police have as they investigate this crime."

Meanwhile, NBC reports that more than 2,000 people showed up for the funeral of the three victims.

TagsNorth Carolina Shooting, Muslim murder, hate crime, parking dispute, Craig Stephen Hicks, Chapel Hill Shooting