A 71-year-old man has been charged with murder and hate crimes after he stabbed two people because they were Muslims in the United States’ Illinois. Joseph Czuba, who has been accused of killing a six-year-old boy and injuring his mother (32), has been charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, hate crimes and aggravated battery, as per a BBC report. The law enforcement responded to an emergency call by the lady who alleged that her landlord had attacked her with a knife, said the Will County Sheriff’s office in a social media post.
The Sheriff’s office said that the detectives were able to determine that the victims were targeted because of them being Muslim and the Israel-Gaza War.
“Detectives were able to determine that both victims in this brutal attack were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis,” it said.
The landlord attempted to choke the woman as she opened the door, as per the text messages sent by the woman to her husband which were shared with CAIR International, largest Muslim civil rights organisation in the US, according to a Guardian report.
He stabbed the mother, yelling: "You Muslims must die", the report added.
She then ran to the bathroom where she called 911 but emerged to find that the man had stabbed her six-year-old son.
“It all happened in seconds,” the woman texted, according to CAIR.
Czuba was sitting upright on the ground near the home’s driveway when the officers reached the spot. He used a 12-inch (31cm) serrated military style knife that has a seven-inch blade to attack the mother and son, the Sheriff's office said.
Despite the man not making any statements to the detectives "personnel were able to gather enough information through interviews and evidence to formally charge Joseph Czuba with numerous criminal offences,” as per the statement.
The boy was rushed to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries while the mother was hospitalised in serious condition. It was later established that the boy was stabbed 26 times, as per the BBC report.
In a press conference held by the group on Sunday, the victim — who just turned six years old a few weeks before — was described as a "boy who loved his family, soccer and basketball," by CAIR executive director, Ahmed Rehab, as per the Guardian report.
“He paid the price for the atmosphere of hate that we are seeing here in the United States,” Rehab said, adding the man was enraged with the news coming out of Israel.
As per Rehab, Czuba previously had good relations with the family, even building a treehouse for the boy. He would bring him toys and allow him to swim in a makeshift pool, he said.
“The family had no reason to suspect what was to occur,” Rehab said.