Landlord to Face Arraignment in Case of Palestinian American Boy's Death

The landlord charged with murder and hate crimes for the fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy near Chicago is scheduled to appear in court Monday for his arraignment.

According to the Will County Sheriff's Office, on October 14, Wadea Al-Fayoume was brutally stabbed 26 times at his residence in Plainfield Township, Illinois. His mother, Hanaan Shahin, 32, was also attacked and sustained more than a dozen stab wounds but managed to survive.

The sheriff's office charged Joseph M. Czuba, a 71-year-old landlord, with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, two hate crime charges, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

Wadea Al-Fayoume, 6.

Family Handout/CAIR-Chicago

The Palestinian-American boy, who had recently turned six, was tragically stabbed to death near Chicago.

According to court documents, moments prior to the attack, Czuba expressed anger towards Shahin, the boy's mother, over the situation in Israel.

Shahin informed the police that she had requested for prayers of peace when Czuba assaulted her with a knife. As she sought refuge in a bathroom and dialed 911, Czuba proceeded to fatally stab her son. The documents revealed Shahin's account of the incident, according to the police.

Although Czuba did not provide any statement to the detectives, the authorities concluded that the victims were deliberately selected by the suspect because they were Muslim and due to the continuous Middle Eastern conflict concerning Hamas and the Israelis, as stated by the sheriffs office.

Czuba briefly addressed the judge during his first court appearance, stating his intention to have his appointed public defender represent him. He was then ordered to be held without bail until the preliminary hearing on Monday.

According to Ahmed Rehab, the executive director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations Chicago office, Wadea's parents hail from a village in the West Bank. Wadea's mother immigrated to the United States 12 years ago, followed by his father 9 years ago, and Wadea himself was born in the US.

The attack is a manifestation of the global reverberations caused by Hamas' assaults on Israel, followed by Israel's subsequent airstrikes and blockade on the Gaza Strip. In the United States, this conflict has escalated tensions and triggered a series of hate-fueled incidents specifically aimed at Palestinians, Muslims, and Jews, as reported by advocates and community leaders.

The killing of Wadea through a fatal stabbing has garnered extensive condemnation from various officials, including President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden.

Report by CNN's Brad Parks and Lauren Mascarenhas.