Afghan man Syed charged with the killing of muslims in New Mexico

Muhammad Syed

Muhammad Syed

Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, said the suspect Muhammad Syed arrested for the killing of four muslims from November last year, is an Afghan and a Muslim, who knew the victims.

Syed is 51 years old.

He was arrested on Monday after a traffic stop more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) away from his home in Albuquerque.

He was charged with killing two victims and was identified as the prime suspect in the other two slayings, authorities announced Tuesday.

Victims of Albuquerque killings L-R Muhammed Ahmadi, Naeem Hussain, Afzaal Hussain, Aftab Hussein
Victims of Albuquerque killings L-R Muhammed Ahmadi, Naeem Hussain, Afzaal Hussain, Aftab Hussein

The ambush killings of the four Muslim men shook the community and inspired a flood of information, including a tip that led to the arrest of Syed.

The Muslim community is breathing “an incredible sigh of relief,” said Ahmad Assed, president of the Islamic Center of New Mexico. “Lives have been turned upside down.”

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Syed had an attorney to speak on his behalf.

The first killing last November was followed by three more between July 26 and Aug. 5.

Police Chief Harold Medina said it was not clear yet whether the deaths should be classified as hate crimes or serial killings or both.

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Syed was from Afghanistan and had lived in the United States for about five years, police said.

“The offender knew the victims to some extent, and an interpersonal conflict may have led to the shootings,” a police statement said, although investigators were still working to identify how they had crossed paths.

When asked specifically if Syed, a Sunni Muslim, was angry that his daughter married a Shiite Muslim, Deputy Police Cmdr. Kyle Hartsock did not respond directly.

He said “motives are still being explored fully to understand what they are.”

Assed acknowledged that “there was a marriage,” but he cautioned against coming to any conclusions about the motivation of Syed, who occasionally attended the center’s mosque.

Police said Syed gave them a statement but didn’t disclose details.

The slayings drew the attention of President Joe Biden, who said such attacks “have no place in America.”

They also sent a shudder through Muslim communities across the U.S. Some people questioned their safety and limited their movements.

“There is no justification for this evil. There is no justification to take an innocent life,” Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American–Islamic Relations, said at a Tuesday news conference in Washington, D.C.

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