The Misery Machine - The Case of Wadee Alfayoumi

Starting point is 00:00:00 Wadi Elfayumi was a Palestinian-American boy born in Illinois on October 6, 2017. His name in Arabic means peaceful and innocent. Wadi's parents were Ode al-Fa Yumi and Hanan Shaheen, who would later divorce. According to reports, Hanan had immigrated to the U.S. around 2011 for a shot at a peaceful life. His uncle, Yusef Hannon, told reporters that Wadi loved his school, loved his teachers, loved his mother. He loved life. He was acting like a normal six-year-old child, always with a smile. Other reports described the young boy as energetic, loving, and joyous light who brought sunshine to his loved ones and classmates. Wadi was a kindergartner who enjoyed Dragon Ball Z and

Starting point is 00:00:48 playing with his Legos. He also loved sports and excelled at playing soccer and basketball. At the time of our story, Wadi had just celebrated his sixth birthday. He and his family were living in a rented home in Plainfield, a town roughly 40 miles outside of Chicago. Wadi and his mother were renting two rooms from a 71-year-old man named Joseph Chuba and his wife, Mary. According to Uncle Yusuf, Joseph was friendly to the whole family, but especially to the kid, who he treated like a grandson. He brought him gifts, he brought him some toys. He would later tell reporters that there were no signs of anything wrong between the landlord and the family. In fact, Wadi and Hannan had been living with the Chuba family for two years,

Starting point is 00:01:34 and Joseph had even attended Wadi's birthday party a few days prior. By all accounts, the family considered Joseph to be like a grandfather to Wadi. However, the day after Wadi had his sixth birthday, a significant event took place in the Middle East. Amos led an attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis and foreign net. nationals, which include 46 U.S. citizens. Hamas and other groups also seized 251 hostages. Please stick with us because this event directly impacted Wadi's living situation in the U.S. as his landlord now considered his family a threat. As of April 8, 2025, it's estimated that at least 50,810 Palestinians and 1706 Israelis

Starting point is 00:02:17 have been killed with over 100,000 wounded on both sides. This includes 166 journalists and media workers. 120 academics, and over 224 humanitarian aid workers. 179 of the aid workers were employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. It's been estimated that 80% of Palestinian casualties were civilians. However, it's believed that the numbers do not reflect the total number of victims. According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, some 10,000 bodies may be unaccounted for as they're currently buried beneath tons of rubble.

Starting point is 00:02:51 The numbers also do not reflect what the health. health ministry described as preventable disease, malnutrition, and other consequences of the war. According to the United Nations, at least 1.9 million Palestinians have been displaced due to the war. This is about 90% of the population. Many of those people have been reportedly displaced 10 times or more. Now, this is obviously a very, very oversimplified version of events that have been unfolding for over a century. To go over every piece of information would take hours upon hours to do so, but we mentioned them because they very much directly impact the trajectory of today's story. As we mentioned earlier, this was not the type of environment that Hanan wanted for her son.

Starting point is 00:03:37 In the days following October 7th, Joseph told then 32-year-old Hanan that she needed to find a new place to live because, in his words, Muslims were not welcome. His wife, Mary, wanted to give the family 30 days notice to vacate, but Joseph wanted them gone immediately. According to Mary, her husband had become withdrawn in the days following the attack. He began listening to conservative talk radio and had become increasingly paranoid about the presence of a Palestinian-American family in his home. Joseph had recently withdrawn $1,000 cash from his bank account out of fear that some sort of catastrophe would strike the U.S. power grid. Mary would later testify that Joseph rarely had violent outbursts during their 30-year marriage. She didn't go into detail about any of those rare violent outbursts that did happen.

Starting point is 00:04:28 However, tensions came to a head on the morning of Saturday, October 14, 2023, when Joseph forced his way into Hanan's room. After attempting to strangle her and break her teeth, Joseph produced a knife from his waistband and managed to stab Hanan over a dozen times. Thankfully, she was able to escape and lock herself in the bathroom. But as she was on the phone with 911 operators calling for help, she could hear six-year-old Wadi screaming. Joseph, who initially acted as a grandfather figure, was murdering the little boy. He was stabbed a total of 26 times. When first responders arrived on the scene, they found the knife lodged in his body.

Starting point is 00:05:14 It was very little that they could do. Wadi Alfayumi died from his injury shortly after the attack. According to his great uncle, Mahmoud Yusif, when he was stabbed, his last words to his mom were, Mom, I'm fine. You know what? He is fine. He's in a better place. Police found Joseph sitting on the ground outside of his playing field home covered head to toe in blood. Being transported in a cruiser, he told officers, and I quote, I thought they were going to do jihad on me. He also claimed that he was afraid for his life and that his wife referred to the family as an infestation of rats.

Starting point is 00:05:54 Joseph was arrested and pled not guilty to charges of murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery, and a hate crime. He spoke briefly to confirm that he would need a court-ordered public defender and that he understood the charges against him before he was shackled and led back to the county jail with no bond issued. If convicted, he faced a mandatory prison sentence of 20 to 60 years up to a possible life sentence. During opening statements, Will County Assistant State Attorney Michael Fitzgerald described the horror that Wadi must have felt in his final moments telling the court that. He could not escape. If it wasn't enough that this defendant killed that little boy, he left the knife in the little boy's body.

Starting point is 00:06:34 He continued, this happened because the defendant was afraid that a war that had started on October 7, 2023, a half a world away in the Middle East, was going to come to his doorstep. This happened because Hanan and Wadi were Muslim. Hanan was the first witness to take the stand. She told the court that her landlord was angry for what was going on in Jerusalem. She responded with, let's pray for peace, he attacked her. While Joseph was stabbing her multiple times, she heard him say, You devil Muslim, must die. She testified that she called 911 from the bathroom of the Chuba home,

Starting point is 00:07:10 thinking that maybe Joseph had left. That was until she heard her son. She told the court, I started hearing my son screaming, screaming, screaming, oh no, stop. During the course of the week-long trial, members of the jury heard Hanan's terrifying 911 call, where she can be heard telling the dispatcher, the landlord is killing me and my baby. Foring to report, some of the crime scene photos were so graphic, the Judge Amy Bertani Tomchak ordered that the monitors be turned away from the audience, which include many of Wadi's loved ones.

Starting point is 00:07:43 appearing thin and frail in a red jail uniform, Joseph did not take the stand in his own defense and waived his right to testify. During her opening statement, Will County Public Defender Kylie Blatty asked the jurors to consider each piece of evidence carefully, including explicit photos and video because in her words, key parts were missing. Attorney Bladdy was quoted as saying, It is easy to get lost in the horror of those images, but the prosecution can't convince you of their case simply by showing.

Starting point is 00:08:13 you how horrible the death of a little boy was. On February 28th, 2025, it only took 90 minutes for the jury to come back with a guilty verdict. After the verdict was read, Wadi's father, Ode, told reporters that, I don't know if I should be pleased or upset, if I should be crying or laughing. He liked this decision came a little too late. Joseph's defense team sought to vacate his conviction on the grounds of the prosecution played too heavily on the jury's emotions. The hearing is scheduled for May 7th and we'll keep an eye out for updates if and when they become available. On March 14th, 2024, Senator Richard Durbin introduced Resolution 589, known simply as the Wadi Resolution to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The resolution recognized the loss of Wadi

Starting point is 00:09:02 Al-Fa Yumi and that the United States has zero tolerance for hate crimes, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab discrimination. It also recognizes that freedom of speech and peaceful protests are constitutionally protected. On September 24th, 2024, the resolution passed. According to Congresswoman Delia Ramirez, we are 12 days from October 7th and 19 days from the anniversary of Wadi's murder. Both dates marked by children torn from their mothers. The Muslim Civic Coalition Board shared that the Wadi Resolution uplifts his proud Palestinian

Starting point is 00:09:43 heritage as a powerful and beautiful community that represents the best of our nation. On the anniversary of Wadi's murder, dozens of mourners gathered at Settlers Park and Plainfield to grieve together as a community. Wadi's father, O'Day, was among those in attendance at a gathering the following day at Chicago's Muslim Community Center. He told supporters that he didn't want his son's death politicized in any way. And we really hope that you will all honor his wishes and be kind to one another in the comments. That murdered boy's father tells me one year later he still hears his son's voice in his heart and he wants his boy's legacy to be one of unity, not division. On the northwest side prayers and calls for peace mourners on this somber day

Starting point is 00:10:31 marking one year after the death of Wadi al-Aumi whose name in Arabic means peaceful and innocent. as a big name of Islamophobia. Six-year-old Wadi was killed October 14, 23. After being stabbed more than two dozen times at his home near Plainfield, his mother also critically wounded. We're never going to forget what happened. We're never going to forget the atmosphere that was created that still lingers today. Wadi's father attended the remembrance at the Muslim community center of Chicago

Starting point is 00:11:05 and sat down with us afterward. Speaking in Arabic, O'Day Alfayumi said he's filled. with sadness but still feels his son's presence and hears his voice. One year later, Wadi's death still resonates. In his statement, President Joe Biden said, On this day, let us all take steps that honor Wadi's memory and reaffirmed together that there is no place for hate in America, including hatred of Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims.

Starting point is 00:11:32 Wadi's father urging people of all faiths to see the humanity in others. In his grief, he said it's brought him joy to know so many people around the world have seen his son in their own children. On May 2nd, 2025, now 73-year-old Joseph Chuba, was sentenced to 53 years in prison in a Joliet Illinois courtroom. 30 years for the murder of Wadi Alfayumi, 20 years for the attack on his mother,

Starting point is 00:11:58 and three years for hate crimes. With all three running consecutively, Joseph will almost certainly die behind bars. Judge Amy Bertani Tomchak called the attack on the six-year-old and his mother, brutal and heinous as she addressed the court. The Will County State Attorney's Office issued a statement calling Joseph a morally reprehensible killer. The impact of his actions truly unfathomable.

Starting point is 00:12:23 Ahmed Rahab, who is the executive director of Care Chicago, shared that no sentence can restore what was taken. But today's outcome delivers a necessary measure of justice. Wadi was an innocent child. He was targeted because of who he was, Muslim, Palestinian, and love. Our work now is to ensure that no other child suffers from the deadly consequences of hate. Care also reported that in the last year alone, they received 8,658 complaints, which represented a 7.6% rise in anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents. This is the highest number of incidents since the group began tracking them in 1996.

Starting point is 00:13:02 The American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee's executive director Abed Ayu shared in a statement that This sentencing brings closure to the case and a measure of accountability and justice to a tragedy that is shaken our community. We must come together to ensure that tragedies fueled by anti-Arab, anti-Palestinian hate, and Islamophobia are never accepted as the norm in our society. At the conclusion of the hearing, Wadi's great-uncle Mahmoud Yusuf was the only member of the family to speak. During a press conference, he pondered which fake news could have prompted such violence. The sentence was just for a criminal, but was not just for us as families, as parents. We needed more answers. Unfortunately, Mr. Joseph did not give his statement today because we were not pre-preference.

Starting point is 00:13:56 No matter what we say, no matter what kind of sentence, it's definitely not justified. I mean, he's only six years old. The father here, he had plans for him. He had future. unfortunately was taken away and he had no rights to do that. And if you have... You looked Joseph right in the eyes several times. Why didn't you have to do that?

Starting point is 00:14:19 There's a lot of motions inside. And one of the reasons I looked at him, I was hoping for him to come up and say something just to justify it. But trust me, no, we're not satisfied. Could you explain what you're setting forward as far as what you, what kind of answers you were looking for from him? We needed more explanation what exactly made him flip the way he did.

Starting point is 00:14:50 He was before all this commotion, before all the news that came, all the fake news that came from high levels of this country and from high reporters of this country came up. He was a grandfather figure. He took care of this little boy. After the news, that's what everything changed. So we needed him to come up and say something. What did he hear?

Starting point is 00:15:14 What did he feel from those fake alleged news that came out? We needed that. Were you surprised that he did not give you the answer? Yes, we were surprised. Because for just for a second, we thought he had some rumors inside of him that we would come up and say, okay, I want to come up and say one, two, three. But unfortunately, he did not. He was, he was actually, he was staring at me.

Starting point is 00:15:39 It's like he wanted to say something, but he didn't, but yes, when I looked at his face, it was hard. It was hard just to look at his face the way he was looking at. Can't he actually do something? No. A little bit peace of mind for explanation, just why did you do that? I mean, his father is right here, like I said, his father, one of the reasons his father did not stand in front of the judge for the statement because of the emotion. Imagine if he stood there, maybe he would have done something crazy.

Starting point is 00:16:09 I mean, it's not that easy. So we needed that explanation for just a little peace of mind. Mahmoud, his father told me before that he crossed the country. What's your message to the rest of the country today after reaching the verdict on this hate crime? Unfortunately, lately there's been a lot of hate crimes around the whole country, not just Wadir. Wadir was the first to start with. There was a lot of hate crimes and we needed that to stop. We need people to understand other people at first.

Starting point is 00:16:38 Don't just come up and judge. We've seen a lot of hate crimes around the country. The messages, like I said, we wish people just to understand other people more, especially religions. And most of the hate crimes are going on in this country right now, if you pay attention, it's all against Muslims. All of it. The hatred is against a religion that people don't understand. They just come up with a judgment. And we know that it's tied up with the war overseas, unfortunately.

Starting point is 00:17:21 That's why our son was killed because of the war overseas. and the lies of all the news comes and allegations about that war, unfortunately. And some people are bringing this war to this country. You cannot do that. You cannot bring the war here. You cannot bring hatreds to this country for things that you have in your mind. We need that to stop. In the wake of Wadi's death,

Starting point is 00:17:46 mourners created a makeshift memorial outside of the Chuba's plainfield home. They decorated the yard with handmade signs, wooden crosses, balloons and stuffed animals. One sign read, Rest in Peace, precious boy. Visible from the street was a play area that, ironically, Joseph had built for Wadi. My daughter gave up one of her stuffed animals

Starting point is 00:18:09 and she said this is for him. That's the mom bear and that's her holding her son the blue. For the little boy who didn't deserve this. He didn't. 26 times. How can anyone do that to a little boy? It's because it's in this community. He had nothing to do with it.

Starting point is 00:18:28 He was Muslim and this is what they did. This is what this monster did. I live in Plainfield for over 20 years. You don't feel safe. The Palestinian community will pull together, but we're seeing a lot of this, us being attacked, attacked. In person, social media, it's going to happen.

Starting point is 00:18:50 You're going to see more and more of this. The Plainfield Park District Board of Commissioners passed a resolution honoring Wadi's memory at their regular board meeting held on February 12, 2025 at Prairie Activity and Recreation Center. The district will name the sensory playground on the east side of Van Horn Woods in his remembrance, which reflects their commitment to fostering an inclusive, diverse, and welcoming community. There was a heavy police presence at Wadi's funeral, which was held in a neighborhood known as Little Palestine. According to Syed Khan, Vice Chairman of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, this child should be in school, and instead, we are here today for his funeral. Sadly, Hanan was unable to attend as she was still in the hospital recovering from her injuries. mourners also flooded the mosque foundation in the Chicago suburb of Bridgeview.

Starting point is 00:19:47 Sadia Nawab, a mother of three who lives near the mosque, shared her thoughts with reports. saying, I'm shocked, but I'm not surprised. We're worried about our children and more worried about the powerless kids around the world that are in Palestine now, that are in Gaza. According to Sadia, local schools had taken extra precautions because of the conflict. She accused government leaders and media organizations of being biased against Palestinians in encouraging an atmosphere of hate. Wadi was laid to rest at the Parkholm Cemetery in Lagos. Grange Park, Illinois. He was buried beneath a granite headstone with inscriptions in both Arabic and English. One inscription describes him as the young martyr, while another beneath his birth and death

Starting point is 00:20:34 dates reads, To him we belong, and to him we shall return.

The Misery Machine - The Case of Wadee Alfayoumi

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