Who was Wadea Al-Fayoume? Illinois man to appear in court for alleged murder of 6-year-old in 'heinous' hate crime
PLAINFIELD, ILLINOIS: Wadea Al-Fayoume, a six-year-old boy was fatally shot in a hate crime fueled by the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The young boy's mother Hanaan Shahin, a Palestinian-American was also attacked on October 14 by their landlord Joseph Czuba who allegedly screamed anti-Muslim slurs while stabbing them multiple times.
What are the charges against Joseph Czuba?
In the alleged hate crime, Czuba has been charged with with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, and two counts of hate crime, and aggravated battery on October 15.
Following the suspect's indictment by an Illinois grand jury, the suspect in Plainfield in Will County is scheduled to appear in court on Monday, October 30.
According to authorities, the young son and his mother were targeted because of their Muslim faith, according to Fox News.
Shahin explained the incident to investigators revealing that Czuba was upset over the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict and he attacked them after she had urged the landlord to "pray for peace."
The 32-year-old woman is currently recovering from her multiple stab wounds.
Al Fayoume's funeral on October 16 was attended by hundreds of people.
Joseph Czuba's actions were described as 'exceptionally brutal'
The indictment against the accused murderer described the young child's death as the result of "exceptionally brutal or heinous behavior."
Czuba, who is currently behind bars, is expected to appear in court in Joliet, Chicago.
In a statement issued through the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Chicago chapter, the grieving mother said her son was her best friend and asked the public to "pray for peace."
Wadea Al-Fayoume's father recalls brutal incident
Speaking about the tragic incident, the six-year-old victim's father Oday Al-Fayoume said his family had shared a good bond with Czuba, the landlord who lived on the ground floor of the residence.
"He is an angel. Basically a small angel in the form of a person. To this minute, I cannot believe how this could have happened," Oday said.
"My ex-wife and son knew him, and they had a good relationship. It is hard to picture this man holding a knife about to stab my son."
"I keep thinking that my son was probably running towards him before getting stabbed, trying to give him a hug," he added.
Oday revealed that he spoke to his ex-wife following the incident and learned that his son's final words were, "I'm fine."
"The way I found out wasn’t the right way to tell a parent. I got a call from the police department, and they gave me three sentences exactly: ‘Are you Oday Al-Fayoume? Are you Wadea’s father? He has been killed.’ That’s how I found out," Oday continued.
"It was such a shock that I thought maybe I misheard. So I asked them: He died? And they said ‘No, he had been killed'," he added.