The killing of Naeem Hussein, 25-years-old, came within two weeks of the murders of two of his fellow Muslims – on the day he attended their funerals.
Hours before, he had gone to lunch at the mosque after the funerals, and asked Tahir Gauba, director of public affairs with the Islamic Center of New Mexico, if he knew more information about the two murders.
“He was worried. I told him to be careful,” Gauba said.
Aftab Hussein, 41, was gunned down in his apartment complex on July 26. On August 1, another shooting incident left 27-year-old Muhammad Afzaal Hussain dead. Both were originally from Pakistan, same as Naeem.
In fact, Naeem had only obtained his US citizenship last month, his brother-in-law, Ehsan Shalami told the media. In 2016, Naeem fled persecution in Pakistan for being a Shia Muslim.
According to Shalami, Naaem continued to be a truck driver during the pandemic even when others quit, because he thought it was the right thing to do. This year, he opened his own trucking company.
“He was the type of guy literally, that if you asked for his clothes off his back, he would, you know, give [them] without hesitation. You needed money. You would call him,” Shalami said.
Naeem’s friends found his body around midnight on August 6. He died of a gunshot to the head.
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham called the killings “targeted.” Authorities are probing their possible link to the murder of Mohammad Ahmadi, 62, in November 2021. He was shot and killed outside his family’s halal cafe.
The murders have sent a ripple of fear across the local Muslim community.
Ahmad Assed, who heads the Islamic Center of New Mexico, said that people are terrified and panicked. “We’ve certainly taken precautions; things like the buddy system, don’t travel at night if you don’t have to, don’t even come to the Mosque for prayer if you feel like you can’t do that safely.”
The Albuquerque Police Department has no suspect yet, but told people to be on the lookout for a dark-colored, four-door sedan, which might be a Volkswagen Jetta.
Anyone who has information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 505-843-STOP or the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
Crime Stoppers pledged a $20,000 reward, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations will give $10,000, for information that leads to an arrest.
On Monday, President Joe Biden said he is angered and saddened by the horrific killings, and that his administration stands strongly with the Muslim community.
“These hateful attacks have no place in America,” he said.
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