Illinois man who fatally stabbed a six-year-old Muslim boy and seriously wounded the boy’s mother in a brutal hate-crime attack sentenced to 53 years in prison.
An Illinois man convicted of murdering a 6-year-old Muslim boy and seriously injuring the boy’s mother in a hate-fueled attack has been sentenced to 53 years in prison, CNN reported on Friday.
Joseph Czuba, 73, was found guilty in February on charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and a hate crime in connection with the October 2023 killing of Wadee Alfayoumi and the stabbing of his mother, Hanan Shaheen. The sentencing took place Friday in Will County Court.
The victims were attacked in Czuba’s Plainfield home, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, where they had been living as tenants for two years.
Prosecutors said Czuba targeted the family because of their Muslim faith, citing his growing agitation following the eruption of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Central to the prosecution’s case was the gripping testimony of Shaheen, who described how Czuba launched the attack after ordering them to leave, declaring that Muslims were not welcome. He stabbed Shaheen more than a dozen times before turning on Wadee, stabbing the child 26 times and leaving the knife lodged in his body.
Jurors deliberated for less than 90 minutes before convicting Czuba.
Graphic crime scene photos and a harrowing 911 call from Shaheen were presented during the trial. Czuba’s ex-wife also testified, saying he had become increasingly disturbed by news coverage of the Middle East conflict.
Czuba did not speak during the proceedings, and his defense team questioned aspects of the prosecution’s case but did not provide an alternative account of the events.
The attack reverberated throughout the Plainfield area, home to a large Palestinian-American population. Wadee’s death prompted widespread condemnation, public mourning, and calls for greater protection of Muslim communities. A local playground was later dedicated in the boy’s memory.
