Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions that could be upsetting and disturbing.
A Plainfield Township landlord who fatally stabbed a 6-year-old boy and seriously wounded his mother targeted them because of their Islamic faith and the Israel-Hamas war, according to authorities.
Joseph Czuba, 71, was charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and two counts of a hate crime, the Will County Sheriff's Office said in a news release on Sunday.
At around 11:38 a.m. on Saturday, deputies with the sheriff's office were called to a home in the 16200 block of South Lincoln Highway near Lily Cache Road regarding a stabbing involving Czuba and a renter, according to authorities. The renter, a 32-year-old woman, sustained over a dozen stab wounds to her body and was expected to survive the attack.
Czuba also allegedly stabbed the woman's son, who was initially transported to the hospital in critical condition, but later died from his injuries, according to the sheriff's office. An autopsy conducted by a forensic pathologist on Sunday revealed that the boy had been stabbed 26 times throughout his body with a 12-inch military knife, authorities stated.
The landlord, who was found by responding officers on the ground near the home's driveway, was treated for a laceration and released from the hospital. He was subsequently taken to the Will County Sheriff’s Office Public Safety Complex and questioned by detectives, according to police.
While Czuba didn't make any statements regarding his involvement in the attack, law enforcement were able to gather evidence, which led prosecutors to file numerous criminal charges. Detectives determined that both victims were targeted due to their Islamic faith and the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, police stated.
Czuba was taken to the Will County Adult Detention Facility, where he was awaiting his initial court appearance.
The Council on American–Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, identified the mother and son as Hanaan Shahin and Wadea Al-Fayoume, who are both Palestinian-American. They had resided on the ground floor of the home for two years and had no notable issues with Czuba, their landlord, according to a statement from the advocacy group.
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CAIR cited text messages sent from the boy's mother in the hospital to his father, saying that the landlord "had been angry with what he was seeing in the news." Then, the landlord knocked on the mother's door, at which point he allegedly tried to choke her and attack her with a knife, according to CAIR, citing the text messages.
Six-year-old Wadea, who had just celebrated his birthday a few weeks ago, loved playing basketball and soccer, according to his father.
"He love his family and his friends. He loved life. He was looking forward to a long, healthy prosperous life...Like your child, like my child, like any of us when we were children," said Ahmed Rehab, executive director of CAIR Chicago. "He has no clue about these larger issues happening in the world, but he was made to pay for it."
Youself Hannon, Wadea's paternal uncle, spoke alongside Rehab at a news conference, delivering an emotional message.
"We are not animals," he stated. "We are humans. We want people to see us as humans, to feel us as humans, to deal with us as humans, because this is what we are."
In a news release issued earlier this week, CAIR-Chicago reported a spike in hate calls/emails as a result of recent violence in the Middle East. The dozens of messages the organization received in recent days rivaled the amounts received following the Sept. 11 terror attacks and former President Trump's travel ban targeting Muslim-majority countries, according to the group.
