US man convicted in Palestinian-American boy hate crime murder dies in jail

The execution of Wadee Alfayoumi and onslaught connected his parent basal arsenic 1 of the worst hatred crimes successful the US since Gaza warfare began.

A United States landlord who was jailed for decades for the horrific October 2023 stabbing decease of a six-year-old Palestinian-American boy, and for critically injuring his mother, has died successful prison.

Joseph Czuba, 73, died connected Thursday successful the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections, the Chicago Sun-Times reported connected Saturday, citing the Will County Sheriff’s Office. The instrumentality enforcement bureau did not instrumentality a telephone seeking remark connected the death, according to the Associated Press quality agency.

The execution of the boy, Wadee Alfayoumi, and the onslaught connected his mother, Hanan Shaheen, was 1 of the earliest and worst hatred transgression incidents successful the US since the commencement of Israel’s warfare connected Gaza.

Three months ago, Czuba was sentenced to 53 years successful prison for the attack. He was found blameworthy successful February of murder, attempted execution and hate-crime charges for Alfayoumi’s decease and for wounding Shaheen.

Czuba attacked them connected October 14, 2023, due to the fact that they were Muslims, and arsenic a effect to the Hamas-led October 7 attacks connected confederate Israel.

Ahmed Rehab, the enforcement manager of the Council connected American-Islamic Relations’ Chicago office, said successful a connection connected Saturday that “this depraved slayer has died, but the hatred is inactive live and well”.

Evidence astatine proceedings included harrowing grounds from Shaheen and her frantic 911 call, on with bloody transgression country photos and a constabulary video. Jurors deliberated for little than 90 minutes earlier handing successful a verdict.

The household had been renting rooms successful Czuba’s location successful Plainfield, astir 40 miles (64km) from Chicago, erstwhile the onslaught happened.

Central to the prosecutors’ lawsuit was harrowing grounds from the boy’s mother, who said Czuba attacked her earlier moving connected to her son, insisting they had to permission due to the fact that they were Muslim.

“He told me: ‘You, arsenic a Muslim, indispensable die,'” said Shaheen during her testimony.

Czuba’s ex-wife, Mary, besides testified for the prosecution, saying helium had go agitated astir Israel’s warfare connected Gaza, which has present killed astir 60,000 Palestinians.

Police said Czuba pulled a weapon from a holder connected a loop and stabbed the lad 26 times. Some of the bloody transgression country photos were truthful explicit that the justice agreed to crook tv screens showing them distant from the audience, which included Wadee’s relatives.

The lawsuit generated headlines astir the satellite and profoundly struck the Chicago area’s ample and established Palestinian assemblage amid rising hostility against Muslims and Palestinians successful the US. Wadee’s funeral drew ample crowds, and Plainfield officials person dedicated a parkland playground successful his honour.

Other similarly-motivated incidents successful the US see the attempted drowning of a three-year-old Palestinian-American miss successful Texas, the stabbing of a Palestinian-American antheral successful Texas, the beating of a Muslim antheral successful New York, a convulsive mob onslaught connected pro-Palestinian protesters successful California and a Florida shooting of 2 Israeli visitors whom the fishy mistook for Palestinians.

Three young Palestinian men were besides changeable adjacent a university field successful Vermont just weeks aft Alfayoumi was stabbed to death.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies