Police identified a suspect on Monday believed to be responsible for murdering several Muslim men in the past few months in Albuquerque, N.M. The suspect, also a Muslim man, was identified as 51-year-old Muhammad Syed and was taken into custody Monday night, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
He was charged with the murder of Aftab Hussein and Muhammad Afzaal Hussain, and police believe two other murders may be connected to the string of homicides.
Hussein was found shot to death in the parking lot of his apartment building on July 26, and Hussain was shot and killed outside his apartment on August 1.
Police say evidence indicates that Syed knew the victims “to some extent,” and that there could’ve been a conflict before the shootings, according to the outlet.
The president of the Islamic Center of New Mexico, Ahmad Assed, told the New York Times that police had said the suspect was a Sunni Muslim and may have killed the victims after his daughter married a Shiite Muslim.
The gun used in the fatal shootings of Hussein and Hussain was found in Syed’s home, the outlet reported.
Another victim, Naeem Hussain, was killed in a parking lot Friday, hours after leaving the funeral for the other two men.
After the three men were killed in a period of just a few weeks, police are trying to determine if another murder of a Muslim man, Mohammad Ahmadi, is related. Ahmadi was shot to death behind a halal market on November 7, 2021, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
Police launched an intensive campaign to catch the murderer after the latest series of killings, urging the residents of Albuquerque to come forward with any information. The Muslim community in the city had grown in size in the past year due to Afghan refugees relocating there after the U.S. withdrawal, and was worried about future killings.
“On top of our investigations into this murder, we’re devoting resources to key patrol areas and neighborhoods within Albuquerque,” Albuquerque chief of police Harold Medina said, according to the outlet. “We lifted overtime caps for our officers so that we could utilize several of our specialized units to help ensure the strong presence of Albuquerque officers to keep the community safe.”
Medina tweeted Tuesday that the suspect was “tracked down” due to the vehicle he was driving.
We tracked down the vehicle believed to be involved in a recent murder of a Muslim man in Albuquerque. The driver was detained and he is our primary suspect for the murders. We will update the media later this afternoon.
— APD Chief of Police (@ABQPoliceChief) August 9, 2022