Fear prevails in US city over murders of 4 Muslim men
ANKARA
The killings of four Muslim men in the US city of Albuquerque, New Mexico have shaken residents as police continue to search for motives and clues.
“Incredibly terrified. Panicked. Some people want to move from the state until this thing is over. Some people have moved from the state,” Ahmad Assed, president of the Islamic Center of New Mexico, told CNN.
“Businesses are closing…early. Students won’t leave their homes,” he said.
On Friday night, 25-year-old Naeem Hussain was found dead by Albuquerque police.
He became the third Muslim man killed in the city within two weeks and the fourth since November.
Hours before his death, Hussain — who had just became a US citizen — attended a funeral for two of the other shooting victims. The young man expressed concern over the recent shootings, Tahir Gauba, spokesman for the Islamic Center of New Mexico, told the cable news network.
Police are seeking “a vehicle of interest” that might be connected to the four killings, according to CNN.
After Hussain was killed in the southwestern state, authorities said they were working to determine whether his murder was linked to the three others.
Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina said Hussain’s murder could be linked to the “ambush-style shootings” of the other three men.
While authorities reiterated a request for anyone with information on the killings to contact the police, it was reported that security measures were increased in certain areas of the city where the Muslim community resides.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the country’s largest Muslim civil rights organization, increased its reward to $10,000 from $5,000 for information leading to the suspect or suspects related to the killings.
Albuquerque police official Kyle Hartsock said Thursday that the person or persons who killed the Muslim men may be the same individual or individuals.
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