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An Illinois landlord who killed a six-year-old Palestinian American boy and severely injured the boy's mother in a vicious hate-crime attack days after the war in Gaza began was sentenced Friday to 53 years in prison.
Wadee Alfayoumi, his mother were stabbed by landlord Joseph Czuba in October 2023
The Associated Press
· Posted: May 02, 2025 1:48 PM EDT | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago
An Illinois landlord who killed a six-year-old Palestinian American boy and severely injured the boy's mother in a vicious hate-crime attack days after the war in Gaza began was sentenced Friday to 53 years in prison.
Joseph Czuba, 73, was found guilty in February of murder, attempted murder and hate-crime charges in the death of Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of his mother, Hanan Shaheen.
Authorities said Czuba targeted them in October 2023 because of their Islamic faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas. The family was renting rooms from Czuba at a suburban Chicago house at the time of the attack.
Evidence at trial included harrowing testimony from Shaheen and her frantic 911 call, along with crime scene photos and police video. Jurors deliberated less than 90 minutes before handing in a verdict.
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