2nd suspect arrested in Sikh temple melee

A second suspect was arrested Monday in connection with a melee on Nov. 10 at the Sikh temple in Tierra Buena. Read previous story.

Parminder Kooner, 47, turned himself in to the Sutter County Sheriff's Department for having stabbed Ajaib Malhi, 30, in the back during the fight. Kooner will be charged with assault with a deadly weapon, according to Capt. Lewis McElfresh.

"There were a lot of assaults going on (during the fight)," McElfresh said Monday. "A lot got hit and we'll probably never know who did it. But we've got these two wrapped up pretty good."

On Nov. 14, Mangal Singh Sanghera of Yuba City, a temple director, was booked into the Sutter County Jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.

Sanghera, 43, is accused of stabbing 46-year-old Balbir Bains in the stomach, authorities said. McElfresh said Bains identified Sanghera as the attacker.

Another man was hospitalized briefly with head contusions on the night of the incident.

On the night of the dispute, deputies were called to the temple in the 2400 block of Tierra Buena Road at about 6:30 p.m.

There, they found dozens of people fighting with sticks. Deputies estimated between 50 and 100 participated in the brawl.

A motive for the violence remains under investigation, the Sutter County Sheriff's Department said.

CONTACT Nancy Pasternack at npasternack@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4781. Find her on Facebook at /ADnpasternack or on Twitter at @ADnpasternack.