SACRAMENTO (AP) — Authorities in Northern California are saying the fatal shooting of a Jordanian man in a Home Depot parking lot was a racially motivated killing.

Sacramento County sheriff’s Sgt. Lisa Bowman said Wednesday that 44-year-old Jeffrey Caylor is awaiting transfer in Butte County, where is being held on charges related to crimes he is accused of committing before and after the killing of 46-year-old Hassan Alawsi, a Jordanian refugee.

Caylor is accused of stalking Alawsi in the parking lot for eight minutes before firing two fatal gunshots on March 16.

Investigators believe Caylor did not know the victim but shot Alawsi because he harbored a severe hatred of people of Middle Eastern descent.