Targeted Murders: Who Is Behind the Killings of Muslims in New Mexico?

Police in the US state of New Mexico and federal agencies are investigating the killings of four Muslims, the latest of which occurred on the night of August 5. The state's governor described the crimes as "targeted murders."

"A young man from the Muslim community was killed," Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina told reporters on Saturday.

Naeem Hussain, 25-year-old, was the fourth victim to be found dead Friday night by Albuquerque police. He became the third Muslim man killed in the city within two weeks and the fourth since November.

In the previous three cases, the police said, victims were ambushed and shot without warning. Medina confirmed that the young man's murder was linked to the previous three murders.

 

Spotlight on Homicide

Police in New Mexico had said earlier that it appeared that the other three Muslims who had died in the state's largest city over the past nine months had been targeted because of their religion and ethnicity.

"The killing of Muslims living in Albuquerque is outrageous and totally unacceptable," New Mexico Governor Michelle Logan Grisham said on Twitter late on Saturday.

It also added that it had sent additional members of the state police to Albuquerque to assist in the investigation.

Two attendees of the same mosque were shot dead in Albuquerque in late July and early August. Police said there was a "high probability" that their deaths were linked to the killing of an Afghan immigrant in November.

Police said Muhammad Afzal Hussain, 27, a former director of planning for the city of Espanola, who had come to the United States from Pakistan, was shot dead on August 1 outside his Albuquerque apartment complex.

Police said this followed the killing of Aftab Hussain, 41, from the large Afghan community in Albuquerque, who was found shot and killed on July 26 near the city's international district.

Police said the two crimes were likely linked to the shooting of Mohamad Ahmadi, 62, in a parking lot near a supermarket and cafe on November 7.

 

No Place for Hate Crimes

US President Joe Biden has condemned the "horrific" murders that killed 4 Muslims in Albuquerque, the largest city in the US state of New Mexico, which the city authorities described as "targeted murders," and police believe they are linked to each other.

"I am angered and saddened by the horrific killings of four Muslim men in Albuquerque," Biden said in a tweet via his Twitter account. "While we await a full investigation, my prayers are with the victims' families, and my Administration stands strongly with the Muslim community. These hateful attacks have no place in America," he added.

On August 6, Albuquerque authorities announced the killing of a fourth Muslim in the city, adding that there was "reason to believe" that his death was linked to three other killings of Muslim men in the city.

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said she would send additional police officers to Albuquerque to work with local and federal authorities to bring "the killer or killers to justice."

She added: "The killing of Muslims living in Albuquerque is outrageous and totally unacceptable," she emphasized: "We will continue to do everything we can to support the Muslim community in Albuquerque and Greater New Mexico during this difficult time. You are welcome here, and we stand with you."

 

Spreading Fears

The grief and terror have spread to Muslims across New Mexico. President of the Islamic Center of New Mexico Ahmad Assed pointed out: "Incredibly terrified. Panicked. Some people want to move from the state until this thing is over. Some people have moved from the state."

New Mexico: Molly Akbar, an Albuquerque businessman, carries a gun most of the time after three Muslim men he knew were killed after being ambushed in the largest city in the US state of New Mexico in the past 10 days.

He said he and other members of the Muslim community in Albuquerque are taking such precautions while police search for those who have targeted and shot four men of Pakistani or Afghani origin in the city since November.

Akbar added that he last saw Naeem Hussain on Friday at the funeral of two other victims who were killed on August 1 and July 26, respectively.

Naeem Hussain, who was in his mid-20s, was shot dead hours later near Central Avenue southeast of Albuquerque, like the other two men. Akbar also knew Muhammad Ahmadi, a Muslim like him from Afghanistan.

Akbar said Ahmadi was shot and killed on November 7, 2021, while smoking a cigarette outside a store he and his brother ran in southeast Albuquerque.

"People are trying to understand 'why us?'" said Akbar, a former US State Department official with a gun license. "Why the Muslim community specifically?"

The police offered little clue as to why they believed the murders were related to the victims' race and religion.

Albuquerque Deputy Sheriff Kyle Hartsock asked the public at a University of New Mexico affidavit on Monday to report a gray or silver Volkswagen Jetta believed to be involved in the killings.

The latest three killings took place near the University of New Mexico, and some Pakistani students have left the town to seek safety, said Tahir Gauba, a spokesman for the Islamic Center of New Mexico, where the four victims were praying.

During the briefing, police recommended worried students carry pepper spray on campus but said vigilance was the best defense.

 

Hate Crimes

Muhammad Imtiaz Hussain, the brother of Muhammad Afzaal Hussain, the fourth victim of hate crimes in New Mexico, told CNN that whoever killed his brother didn't just steal the life of a beloved family member, but they also stole away his family's sense of freedom.

"My kids do not allow me to even step out of my apartment. They say, 'Dad, it's scary,'" Hussain said just steps from where his brother was gunned down.

In August 2021, the FBI revealed that the 2020 data submitted by more than 15,000 law enforcement agencies across the country identified 7,759 hate crimes in 2020. The FBI stressed that the data indicated a 6 percent increase over 2019 and represented the highest tally in a decade since 2008.

The hate crimes against Black people rose to 2,755 from 1,930, and incidents against Asians jumped to 274 from 158, according to the report.