Illinois Man Convicted in Hate-Driven Murder of Six-Year-Old Palestinian-American Dies in Prison
Joseph Czuba, the Illinois man sentenced to 53 years for the brutal killing of six-year-old Wadea al-Fayoume and the attempted murder of his mother, Hanaan Shaheen, has died in custody, according to the Will County Sheriff’s Office.
Czuba, 73, passed away less than three months into his sentence at an Illinois Department of Corrections facility. The cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
In a case that drew nationwide outrage and renewed concerns over anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian hate, Czuba was convicted in May 2025 of multiple charges, including first-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery, and two hate crime counts.
Prosecutors said he targeted the Palestinian-American family for their Islamic faith shortly after the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza conflict in 2023.
The attack took place in Plainfield, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, where Czuba had rented rooms to the victims.
Authorities said he fatally stabbed young Wadea 26 times and seriously wounded Shaheen during the assault. During court proceedings, Shaheen testified that Czuba told her, “You, as a Muslim, must die,” before attacking her and her son.
The jury returned a guilty verdict in under 90 minutes, and evidence presented during the trial was deemed so graphic that the judge restricted its public display.
Reacting to Czuba’s death, Ahmed Rehab, Executive Director of CAIR-Chicago, stated, “While this depraved killer has died, the hate is still alive and well.”
In June, the Plainfield community, home to a sizable Palestinian-American population, honored Wadea’s memory with a memorial at a local playground.
