Illinois man pleads not guilty to hate crime and murder charges in attack on Muslim mother and son

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Joseph Czuba, 71, stands before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for his arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing the Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother, was also charged with a hate crime. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Oday Al-Fayoume departs the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, after attending the arraignment of Joseph Czuba, in the murder of Al-Fayoume’s 6-year old son, Wadea Al-Fayoume, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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This undated photo provided on Mon., Oct. 16, 2023, by the Chicago chapter of the Council On American Islamic Relations, shows Wadea Al-Fayoume. A Palestinian-American woman seriously injured in a suspected hate crime that left her 6-year-old son dead in a suburb of Chicago is asking the public to “pray for peace” as she recuperates from her injuries. Hanaan Shahin issued a statement Tuesday through the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations after meeting with the group’s executive director a day earlier. (CAIR-Chicago via AP)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, sits before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for his arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing the Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother, was also charged with a hate crime. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Oday Al -Fayoume departs the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, after attending the arraignment of Joseph Czuba, in the murder of Al-Fayoume’s 6-year old son, Wadea Al-Fayoume, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, center, stands with his attorneys George Lenard and Kylie Blatti, before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for Czuba’s arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing the Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother, was also charged with a hate crime. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, is led into a Will County, Ill., courtroom for his arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the county courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing the Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother, and is also charged with a hate crime. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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FILE - Muslim community members mourn Wadea Al Fayoume at his grave in LaGrange, Ill., Oct. 16, 2023. A Palestinian-American woman seriously injured in a suspected hate crime that left her 6-year-old son dead in a suburb of Chicago is asking the public to “pray for peace” as she recuperates from her injuries. Hanaan Shahin issued a statement Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023 through the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations after meeting with the group’s executive director a day earlier. It marked her first public comments since the brutal Oct. 14 attack that left her with multiple stab wounds and stitches on her face. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)

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FILE - Wadea Al Fayoume’s father, Oday Al Fayoume, right, and his uncle Mahmoud Yousef attend a vigil for Wadea at Prairie Activity and Recreation center in Plainfield, Ill., Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. A man accused of murder, attempted murder and a hate crime in an attack on a Palestinian-American woman and Wadea, her young son, will appear in court on Monday, Oct. 30, following his indictment by an Illinois grand jury. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

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FILE - Family members of Wadea Al Fayoume bring his casket into Mosque Foundation in Bridgeview, Ill., Monday, Oct. 16, 2023. A man accused of murder, attempted murder and a hate crime in an attack on a Palestinian-American woman and Wadea, her young son, will appear in court on Monday, Oct. 30, following his indictment by an Illinois grand jury. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, is led into a Will County, Ill., courtroom for his arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al Fayoume, at the county courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing the Muslim boy and seriously wounding his mother, and is also charged with a hate crime. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, left, stands as his attorneys George Lenard and Kylie Blatti, confer during Czuba’s arraignment before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson, in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Will County Ill., Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Fitzgerald, left, addresses Circuit Judge Dave Carlson during the arraignment of Joseph Czuba, right, in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Joseph Czuba, 71, second from right, stands with his attorneys George Lenard and Kylie Blatti, along with Will County Ill., Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Fitzgerald, left, before Circuit Judge Dave Carlson for Czuba’s arraignment in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Circuit Judge Dave Carlson presides in the arraignment of Joseph Czuba, in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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Will County Ill., Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Fitzgerald makes notes as he address Circuit Judge Dave Carlson during the arraignment of Joseph Czuba, right, in the murder of 6-year old Wadea Al-Fayoume, at at the Will County, Ill., courthouse, Monday, Oct. 30, 2023, in Joliet, Ill. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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By SOPHIA TAREEN

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — A man accused of murder, attempted murder and a hate crime in an attack on a Palestinian American woman and her young son pleaded not guilty Monday following his indictmen t by an Illinois grand jury.

Joseph Czuba, 71, is charged in the fatal stabbing of six-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume and the wounding of Hanaan Shahin on Oct. 14. Authorities said the victims were targeted because of their Muslim faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas.

Shahin told police that Czuba, her landlord in Plainfield in Will County, was upset over the war and attacked them after she had urged him to “pray for peace.”

Czuba appeared in court Monday wearing a red jail uniform, socks and yellow rubber slippers.

His attorney George Lenard entered the not guilty plea after the judge read the 8-count indictment. Czuba did not speak, looking down at the podium with his hands folded behind his back as he stood before the judge in the court in Joliet, 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Chicago.

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Shahin, 32, is recovering from multiple stab wounds. Hundreds of people attended her son’s funeral on Oct. 16 where he was remembered as an energetic boy who loved playing games. He had recently had a birthday.

The boy’s father and other family members attended the hearing. They declined to speak to reporters.

The murder charge in the indictment against Czuba describes the boy’s death as the result of “exceptionally brutal or heinous behavior.” The attack on the family — which renewed fears of anti-Islamic discrimination in the Chicago area’s large and established Palestinian community — has drawn condemnation from the White House.

Judge David Carlson ruled that Czuba will remained detained as he awaits a Jan. 8 court hearing.

In arguing to keep Czuba detained, Will County Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Fitzgerald said Czuba was a danger to Shahin and others.

“We also believe he is a threat to the safety of the community,” he said.

Czuba’s attorneys disagreed, citing Czuba’s age and the fact that he is a veteran without any criminal convictions.

Lenard and Fitzgerald declined to comment to reporters after the hearing.

Shahin asked the public to “pray for peace” and said her son was her best friend in a statement issued last week through the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

The attack comes amid rising hostility against Muslim and Jewish communities in the U.S. since Hamas attacked Israel.