Latest news with #Plainfield
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
FBI helps takedown of NJ gun trafficking operation in Plainfield, prosecutor says
PLAINFIELD – A South Jersey man is facing more than three dozen counts of possessing and dealing guns, including handguns, an assault weapon and a machine gun, after a six-month investigation by the Plainfield Police Department, the Union County Prosecutor's Office Narcotics Task Force and the FBI. Anthony Rogers, 29, of Willingboro, was charged with 15 counts of second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, three counts of unlawful possession of an assault weapon, one count of unlawful possession of a machine gun, two counts of unlawful transport of a firearm into the state, two counts of third-degree receiving stolen property, three counts of unlawful sale of an assault weapon, one count of unlawful sale of a machine gun, 10 counts of fourth-degree possession of a large-capacity magazine, three counts of unlawful possession of hollow-point bullets, one count of unlawful possession of a defaced firearm and 14 counts of unlawful transports/sale of weapons, according to Union County Prosecutor William Daniel. During the investigation, Rogers allegedly sold nearly two dozen illegal firearms to an individual, including three assault weapons and one machine gun, Daniel said. Rogers was arrested on July 22 without incident during a vehicle stop based on an active arrest warrant. His passenger, 34-year-old Quran Hannibal Edwards, of Plainfield, was also arrested and charged with third-degree possession of cocaine, Daniel said. After Rogers was arrested, the Union County SWAT team a searched a home on East 6th Street in Plainfield and seized three pounds of marijuana and two handguns, which led to the arrest of 26-year-old Cameron Hannah, of Plainfield, who was charged with fourth-degree possession of more than 6 ounces of marijuana and third-degree possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Email: alewis@ Alexander Lewis is an award-winning reporter and photojournalist whose work spans many topics. This article originally appeared on FBI helps gun trafficking operation takedown in Plainfield: prosecutor Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Man who murdered Palestinian American 6-year-old boy dies in custody, officials say
The Illinois landlord convicted for the murder of a 6-year-old Palestinian American boy died in custody, officials said. Joseph Czuba, 73, fatally stabbed the child, Wadee Alfayoumi, over two dozen times times days after the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023. Prosecutors called the killing a hate-filled attack because the boy and his mother, Hanaan Shaheen, were Muslim. The murder came after Czuba and Shaheen spoke about the onset of the Middle East conflict. Shaheen and Wadee, a kindergartner, rented two rooms from Czuba in Plainfield, a suburb about 40 miles outside Chicago. In February, a jury found Czuba guilty of murder, hate crime and attempted murder charges for the attack. A state circuit court judge in May sentenced him to 53 years in prison. Czuba died in Illinois Department of Corrections custody on July 24, Kevin Hedemark, a spokesperson for the Will County Sheriff's Office, said in an email. Hedemark referred questions − including about the cause of Czuba's death − to state officials, who didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. In the days before the attack, Czuba told Shaheen to move out because of her family's faith. On Oct. 14, 2023, Czuba entered Shaheen's bedroom and attacked her with a military-style knife, prosecutors said. While she locked herself in the bathroom waiting for help, Czuba then attacked Wadee, stabbing him 26 times. Shaheen called 911, saying Czuba was killing her baby. Will County Sheriff's deputies found the boy on a bed with multiple stab wounds to his chest and the knife protruding from his torso. Czuba also stabbed Shaheen multiple times. Wadee's grandfather previously told reporters no sentence would reconcile the loss his family will forever suffer. 'It doesn't matter what the numbers are," Mahmoud Yousef said at the time. "He took a life from us. He took a future." The murder took place a week after Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, 2023, in which 1,200 people were killed in southern Israel and 250 others were taken hostage. Israel's military offensive in Gaza has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians since the start of the war, according to Hamas-run health resources. In Gaza, about a quarter of the 2.1 million people in the Palestinian territory face faminelike conditions, with thousands suffering from acute malnutrition, according to the United Nations World Food Program. Deaths from starvation among children have been chronicled by the World Health Organization and doctors. Contributing: Christopher Cann, USA TODAY; Reuters This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Man who murdered Palestinian American 6-year-old dies, officials say
BBC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
US landlord who killed Palestinian-American boy dies in Illinois prison
An Illinois landlord convicted of murdering his six-year-old Palestinian-American tenant in a violent hate crime has died in Czuba was sentenced to 53 years behind bars in May for the murder of Wadea al-Fayoume as well as the severe wounding and attempted murder of his mother Hanaan Shaheen in 2023. Police say the landlord targeted the pair for their Islamic faith shortly after the start of the Israel-Gaza war. He died at the Illinois Department of Corrections on Thursday, according to the Will County Sheriff's had served less than three months of his decades-long sentence when he died of a currently unknown cause at the age of 73. The family had been renting rooms from Czuba in Plainfield, about 40 miles (64km) from Chicago, when the attack took place. Police say Czuba stabbed al-Fayoume 26 times. The boy later died in was convicted of two counts of hate crime, one count of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder and two of aggravated mother testified in court that Czuba had also attacked her with a knife before moving on to her son, telling her "you, as a Muslim, must die", Reuters did not attend her son's funeral as she was recovering in hospital from injuries received in the crime scene footage displayed during the trial was so explicit that the judge agreed not to show it to audience members. Al-Fayoume's family had been among the took less than 90 minutes to return a verdict in the case that received attention across the US and renewed fears of anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian Rehab, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Chicago office, said in a statement after Czuba's death that while "this depraved killer has died, the hate is still alive and well".A memorial to al-Fayoume was unveiled at a playground in Plainfield in June. The city is home to a large and well-established Palestinian community.
CBS News
4 days ago
- CBS News
Illinois landlord convicted in hate crime killing of 6-year-old Palestinian boy dies in custody
A landlord convicted of fatally stabbing a young Palestinian boy and attacking the boy's mother in Plainfield Township, Illinois, in October 2023, has died in custody, authorities said Saturday. The Will County Sheriff's Office confirmed to CBS News Chicago that Joseph Czuba, 73, died in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections on Thursday. Czuba died less than three months after being sentenced. Czuba was convicted of one count of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder, two counts of aggravated battery, and two counts of hate crime in the attack that killed 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi and seriously injured his mother, Hanan Shaheen. He was sentenced in May to 53 years in prison His cause of death was not immediately known. Czuba targeted the mother and son because of their Islamic faith and as a response to the war between Israel and Hamas, which started days earlier. Evidence at trial included harrowing testimony from Shaheen and her frantic 911 call, along with bloody crime scene photos and police video. Jurors deliberated less than 90 minutes before handing in a verdict. The family had been renting rooms in Czuba's home in Plainfield, about 40 miles from Chicago, when the attack happened. Central to prosecutors' case was harrowing testimony from the boy's mother, who said Czuba attacked her before moving on to her son, insisting they had to leave because they were Muslim. Prosecutors also played the 911 call and showed police footage. Czuba's wife, Mary, whom he has since divorced, also testified for the prosecution, saying he had become agitated about the Israel-Hamas war, which had erupted days earlier. Police said Czuba pulled a knife from a holder on a belt and stabbed the boy 26 times, leaving the knife in the child's body. Some of the bloody crime scene photos were so explicit that the judge agreed to turn television screens showing them away from the audience, which included Wadee's relatives. The attack renewed fears of anti-Muslim discrimination and hit particularly hard in Plainfield and surrounding suburbs, which have a large and established Palestinian community. Wadee's funeral drew large crowds, and Plainfield officials have dedicated a park playground in his honor. Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of Council on American-Islamic Relations' Chicago office, said in a statement on Saturday that "this depraved killer has died, but the hate is still alive and well."
Indianapolis Star
6 days ago
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Girls basketball recruiting: Offers rolling in for top junior, top-70 senior nearing decision, more
WESTFIELD – The AAU season is officially in the books, which means it's time to begin turning our attention to the upcoming high school girls basketball season. Let's get caught up with the latest recruiting news and commitments. Claire Larrison was (jokingly) hopeful she might avoid playing against Hannah Menser when Greensburg played Plainfield in a summer league game last month. Larrison had heard her IGB teammate and fellow 2027 prospect had been nursing an injury, but Menser was suited up and ready to go for their clash. "I was like, you're joking, right? Of course she played in our game," Larrison laughed. "Her shooting ability is crazy, how quickly she gets that shot off and the way it moves and spins — and she's so quick," Larrison continued. "Hannah's just such a great player." Menser's shot has been her calling card through two varsity seasons. A 5-8 guard and career 42% shooter (38% from 3), she averaged 17 points for the 17-win Quakers last season. She did this while averaging career-highs in assists (3.3), steals (2.9) and blocks (1.8), and a career-low in turnovers (1.7). "I've been looking to be more of a scorer and not just a shooter (this summer)," said Menser, who added Division I offers this offseason from Ball State, Bowling Green, Evansville and Purdue Fort Wayne. "Getting to my pull-up — that's one of my best shots, I just need to be able to get there. And I've been attacking more." The summer high school league also pushed Menser out of her comfort zone. Injuries to Abrielle Dugan (Plainfield's third-leading scorer) and Caroline Pugh forced her to become more of a vocal leader — a responsibility that doesn't necessarily come naturally for her. "I'm getting into it," Menser smiled. "It's been fun." Brooklynn Renn, ranked 70th nationally in her class by ESPN and fourth in the state by Prep Girls Hoops Indiana, will begin narrowing down her list and scheduling official visits after the AAU season, with plans of committing by the start of the upcoming high school season. "It will take some of the pressure and some of the stress off," said Renn, who picked up an offer from Kansas this week, adding it to a list which already included Cal, Clemson, Maryland, Marquette, Miami, Rutgers, West Virginia and Wisconsin, among others." I can play my senior year without worrying about it." A 6-3 forward and Indiana Junior All-Star, Renn fought through injury last season to average 15.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks (school-record 99) for the sectional runner-up Dragons. She shot 41% from the field, 36% from 3 and 71% at the line, and ranks second on the school's all-time rebounding list (715). Renn was tabbed to participate in the Girls Under Armour Association Future 60 event in June, but was unable to attend. Kamrah Banks recently announced her commitment to UCF. The 5-9 senior guard averaged 26.4 points on 54% shooting, 5.4 rebounds, 2.9 steals and 1.8 assists last season, according to MaxPreps. She averaged over 17 points, three assists and two steals as a freshman at Decatur Central, before transferring to Monteverde Academy for a year. Banks, who is nearing 1,000 career points entering the 2025-26 campaign, chose UCF over West Virginia, Kansas State, Kansas, BYU, Kentucky and Vanderbilt, among others. Vanessa Rosswurm, a key member of Norwell's Class 3A state championship team from a season ago, announced her commitment to Indiana Wesleyan. Rosswurm, a 5-8 Junior All-Star, averaged 22.4 points on 36% shooting, plus 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists this past season. She helped the Knights secure their first semistate championship since 1976-77 as a sophomore (finished runner-up to Gibson Southern). Norwell is set to move to 4A this season. A couple 2030 prospects are already beginning to draw high-D-I interest: ∎ Claire Stoops (Zionsville) has added offers from IU, Purdue, Virginia Tech, Michigan State and Iowa this summer. ∎ Quinn Sowder (Brownsburg) was recently offered by Purdue. She is dunking a toy basketball in her profile photo on X.
