FBI investigating fatal stabbing of 6-year-old Muslim boy in Illinois

The Department of Justice is investigating the stabbing of a 6-year-old boy and his mother after police in Will County, Illinois, said they had enough evidence to determine the pair had been targeted because they were Muslim and because of the Israel-Hamas war.

The FBI said Monday that three entities within the DOJ, including the FBI’s Chicago Field Office, had opened a federal investigation into the death of Wadea al Fayoume and the injury of his mother, Hanaan Shahin.

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Police said al Fayoume was stabbed 26 times on Saturday and later died at the hospital from his injuries. A pathologist removed a “twelve-inch serrated military style knife that has a seven-inch blade” from his body during his autopsy, police said.

Al Fayoume’s mother, 32, was stabbed more than a dozen times during the attack and transported to the hospital in serious condition.

Will County Sheriff’s Office

Police charged Joseph Czuba, 71, with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, two counts of a hate crime, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon in connection with the attack.

On Saturday afternoon, they had appeared at the residence of the mother and her son in response to a report of a stabbing involving a landlord and renter. When they arrived, they said they discovered Czuba sitting outside on the ground near the driveway of the home with a laceration on his forehead.

While they did not provide further details about the motivations for the incident, they said they had gathered enough evidence to determine that “both victims in this brutal attack were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the on-going Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis.”

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Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a statement expressing his condolences, saying, “I am heartbroken by the abhorrent killing of Wadea Al-Fayoume, a six-year-old child who died after being stabbed 26 times with a military-style knife.”

“This incident cannot help but further raise the fears of Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian communities in our country with regard to hate-fueled violence,” Garland said. “The Department of Justice is focused on protecting the safety and the civil rights of every person in this country. We will use every legal authority at our disposal to bring to justice those who perpetrate illegal acts of hate.”