Overview

• Joseph Czuba, 73, died Thursday while serving a 53-year sentence at an Illinois Department of Corrections facility, the Will County Sheriff’s Office said
• Officials have not disclosed details on his cause of death as inquiries into his custody and health remain ongoing
• Czuba was convicted in February of first-degree murder, attempted murder and hate crime charges for fatally stabbing 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi and gravely wounding his mother, Hanan Shaheen
• Prosecutors showed trial evidence that Czuba targeted his Palestinian American tenants over their Islamic faith and in response to the Israel-Hamas conflict
• In June, Plainfield residents unveiled a monument honoring Wadee Alfayoumi to affirm community solidarity and oppose anti-Muslim violence