Ex-Plainfield Township landlord convicted of Muslim child’s murder has died

A former Plainfield Township landlord who was convicted of the 2023 hate crime murder of a Muslim child has died, according to a Will County sheriff official.

The Will County Sheriff’s Office received notification from the Illinois Department of Corrections that Joseph Czuba, 73, has died, according to Will County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Dan Jungles.

“I’m told he died yesterday but I do not have any details on it,” Jungles told The Herald-News.

Czuba was sentenced in May to serve 53 years in prison following his conviction of the Oct. 14, 2023, first-degree murder of 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi and the attempted murder of the child’s mother, Hanan Shaheen.

Part of that sentence included 30 years for Wadee’s murder and 20 years for Shaheen’s attempted murder.

The sentence also included three years for a hate crime. Czuba was convicted of attacking the mother and child on the basis of their Islamic faith.