PLAINFIELD TOWNSHIP, IL – Plainfield Township resident Joseph Czuba has been found guilty of murder and hate crime charges for fatally stabbing a 6-year-old Palestinian American and gravely wounding his mother in October 2023.

Czuba, 73, was the landlord of the home where the 6-year-old, Wadee Alfayoumi, and his mother, Hanan Shaheen, lived.

Czuba is being sentenced in May, according to Reuters, and faces life in prison for the murder. Prosecutors say that the victims were targets of anti-Muslim hatred following escalations between Israel and Hamas.

Police found Shaheen and her son, who was stabbed 26 times with a military-style knife, in their apartment in Plainfield Township, according to reports.

Although Czuba pleaded not guilty and did not testify, the jury convicted him following a short deliberation process.

Several people testified in court, including Shaheen. In her testimony, she shared that she rented rooms from Czuba and never faced any trouble from him until the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. He then asked her to move out after making anti-Muslim statements.

Several days later, after Czuba forced entry into her room, he stabbed her more than a dozen times, according to Shaheen’s testimony.

She said Czuba had told her, “you, as a Muslim, must die.”