JOLIET, Ill. — A chilling 911 call, unsettling police videos, and other pieces of crime scene evidence are poised to be crucial elements as an Illinois landlord stands trial for murder and a hate crime. The trial, which resumes on Wednesday, centers on the 2023 killing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy. Joseph Czuba, 73, is charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, and committing a hate crime in the death of young Wadee Alfayoumi and the attack on his mother, Hanan Shaheen, in the Chicago suburb of Plainfield during October 2023. The prosecution contends that Czuba’s actions were based on anti-Muslim prejudice and were provoked by the Israel-Hamas conflict that had erupted shortly before.
In opening statements presented on Tuesday, prosecutors painted a picture of how Czuba allegedly brandished a knife from his belt and stabbed the child 26 times after assaulting his mother. According to Michael Fitzgerald, a Will County assistant state’s attorney, “This happened because this defendant feared that a war, starting on October 7, 2023, thousands of miles away in the Middle East, was coming to his home. This tragedy was motivated by Hanan and Wadee’s Muslim faith.”
Czuba, a resident of Plainfield, maintains his innocence and refrained from speaking as he observed the courtroom proceedings. His defense team cautioned jurors during their opening remarks, urging them to evaluate each piece of evidence meticulously, including the disturbing images and footage, emphasizing that crucial elements were lacking. “It is easy to get lost in the horror of those images,” stated Kylie Blatti, a public defender in Will County. “However, the prosecution cannot substantiate their case merely by emphasizing the horrific nature of a child’s death.”
Hanan Shaheen, the trial’s first witness, shared her testimony on Tuesday, detailing the lead-up to the violence. She recounted renting two rooms from Czuba and his wife, who resided in the same single-family home approximately 40 miles from Chicago. The family had cohabited peacefully with the Czubas for two years, sharing communal areas like the kitchen and living room. However, following the escalation of the war, Czuba insisted they vacate the premises, declaring Muslims unwelcome, to which Shaheen responded by urging him to “pray for peace.” He later confronted Shaheen, attacking her, attempting to break her teeth, and stabbing her, according to her court testimony.
“He told me, ‘You, as a Muslim, must die,’” recalled Shaheen, who primarily testified in English, aided by an Arabic interpreter when necessary. After the attack, she secured herself in the bathroom, observing blood on her and in the bathroom. Hearing her son’s screams from another room prompted her to call 911.
Plainfield police officer Sean Kozak, the first to arrive at the scene, described Shaheen as appearing “shocked and very quiet,” with hands trembling and a fixed stare. The boy, whose name was initially misreported as Wadea Al-Fayoume, was later declared deceased. Shaheen endured over a dozen stab wounds, with her recovery stretching over several weeks.
As a sheriff’s deputy from Will County, Victoria Janovyak broke down in tears while jurors viewed the video footage of Wadee’s body. The image was unseen by those in attendance, including journalists and Wadee’s family, but the officers’ shock on the recording was evident, punctuated by exclamations and profanities over the boy’s injuries.
The attack, which garnered global media attention, has reignited fears of anti-Muslim sentiment within Chicago’s substantial and long-standing Palestinian community. The trial occurs at a time where hostility toward Muslims and Palestinians in the United States has intensified since the October 2023 attack by Hamas on Israel.
