Landlord jailed for decades in hate-crime attack on Palestinian American family has died
Jul 26, 2025, 12:56 PM
FILE - Joseph Czuba, 71, stands before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for his arraignment at the Will County courthouse, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) 鈥� A landlord jailed for decades after he attacked a Palestinian American boy and his mother has died.
Three months ago, Joseph Czuba was sentenced to 53 years behind bars for the attack. He was found guilty in February of murder, attempted murder and hate-crime charges in the death of Wadee Alfayoumi and the wounding of the boy鈥檚 mother, Hanan Shaheen.
The 73-year-old Czuba targeted them in October 2023 because of their Islamic faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas, which started days earlier.
Czuba died Thursday in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections, the Chicago Sun-Times reported, citing the Will County Sheriff鈥檚 Office. The law enforcement agency did not return a call seeking comment on the death.
Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of Council on American-Islamic Relations鈥� Chicago office, said in a statement on Saturday that 鈥渢his depraved killer has died, but the hate is still alive and well.鈥�
Evidence at trial included harrowing testimony from Shaheen and her frantic 911 call, along with bloody crime scene photos and police video. Jurors deliberated less than 90 minutes before handing in a verdict.
The family had been renting rooms in Czuba鈥檚 home in Plainfield, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) from Chicago when the attack happened.
Central to prosecutors鈥� case was harrowing testimony from the boy鈥檚 mother, who said Czuba attacked her before moving on to her son, insisting they had to leave because they were Muslim. Prosecutors also played the 911 call and showed police footage. Czuba鈥檚 wife, Mary, whom he has since divorced, also testified for the prosecution, saying he had become agitated about the Israel-Hamas war, which had erupted days earlier.
Police said Czuba pulled a knife from a holder on a belt and stabbed the boy 26 times, leaving the knife in the child鈥檚 body. Some of the bloody crime scene photos were so explicit that the judge agreed to turn television screens showing them away from the audience, which included Wadee鈥檚 relatives.
The attack renewed fears of anti-Muslim discrimination and hit particularly hard in Plainfield and surrounding suburbs, which have a large and established Palestinian community. Wadee鈥檚 funeral drew large crowds, and Plainfield officials have dedicated a park playground in his honor.
