Joseph Czuba is accused of stabbing his tenant Hanan Shaheen and killing her son, Wadee Al Fayoumi, 6. Prosecutors and defense attorneys are expected to make their closing arguments Friday.

An Illinois landlord who killed a 6-year-old Muslim boy and severely injured the boy's mother in a brutal hate-crime attack days after the war in Gaza began was sentenced to 53 years in prison.

Hanan Shaheen was the first witness called to testify in the trial of Joseph Czuba, the Plainfield landlord charged with attacking her and killing her son, Wadee Al Fayoumi, 6.

Joseph Czuba, 73, was charged in the fatal stabbing of Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of his mother, Hanan Shaheen on Oct. 14, 2023 in Plainfield, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from Chicago.

Shaheen said she fought back during the attack but believed she was dying. She wasn’t seeing clearly and was swallowing blood, she said. She was able to lock herself in the bathroom and call 911.

Hanan Shaheen says her landlord Joseph Czuba, 73, said 'You, as a Muslim, must die,' before assaulting her and stabbing her son Wadee Alfayoumi 26 times. Skip to main content. Toggle Menu.

Joseph Czuba, 73, is charged in the death of 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of Hanan Shaheen on October 14, 2023.

The home where Joseph Czuba allegedly stabbed 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi to death and seriously injured his mother, Hanan Shaheen, on Oct. 15, 2023, in Plainfield. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune) ...

Hanan Shaheen filed the lawsuit on May 20 against Joseph M. Czuba, Mary E. Czuba, Discerning Property Management, LLC, Daniel ...

Joseph Czuba is accused of stabbing his tenant Hanan Shaheen and killing her son, Wadee Al Fayoumi, 6. Prosecutors and defense attorneys are expected to make their closing arguments Friday.

“Hanan Shaheen continues the unimaginable fight for justice for Wadee,” he said in a statement. “We have confidence in the prosecution’s efforts to earn justice for Wadee and Hanan.” Ad ...

Hanan Shaheen was the first witness to testify at the murder and hate crime trial of 73-year-old Joseph Czuba. He is charged with wounding Shaheen and killing her six-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi in ...