After an Orthodox Jew was shot while walking to his synagogue on the Sabbath in Rogers Park, Chicago, last weekend, the media quickly gathered and disseminated information about the victim’s background. The media was the first to also confirm that the suspect, Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, 22, was a Mauritanian citizen who was in the United States illegally.
After the attack, fear increased within Chicago’s Jewish community over a lack of information from the Chicago Police Department and Mayor Brandon Johnson, who took five days to acknowledge the religious background of Abdallahi’s Jewish victim. Police also did not tell the public what Abdallahi shouted as he fired at officers, refusing to confirm the content of the Ring camera footage circulating, although they did acknowledge that “something was said.”
Richard Goldberg, senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that “there is a clear cover-up to seal the flow of information before next week’s election. They knew about the shooter’s illegal status since the when they discovered it.” checked his identification.”
“This should be a national scandal,” Goldberg added.
GROWING CALLS FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO BE CHARGED WITH HATE CRIMES IN THE SHOOTING OF JEWISH MAN
Police investigate a shooting on October 26, 2024 in the West Ridge neighborhood of Chicago. (Fox32 Chicago)
Abdallahi’s address, listed in a police news release, is 27 miles from Rogers Park. Goldberg noted that he went to great lengths to travel a significant distance for the alleged attack.
The suspect’s alleged anti-Semitic motives became a key topic during the Oct. 31 press conference where Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling announced the long-awaited additional charges against Abdallahi for a hate crime and terrorism. bringing the total number of charges against Abdallahi to 16.
“We didn’t get these charges because of public pressure or media attention,” Snelling told reporters. “Gathering evidence and facts takes time.” Snelling explained that detectives had not been able to interview Abdallahi, who remains hospitalized after being shot by police. Evidence on the suspect’s phone “indicated that he planned the shooting and specifically targeted people of the Jewish faith.”
Chicago officials did not provide details about Abdallahi’s immigration status at their news conference. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokesperson Erin Bultje confirmed to Fox News Digital that Abdallahi was detained while entering the country near San Ysidro in March and was later released into the US.
“It’s pretty obvious what happened here,” said Goldberg, a former NSC official in the Trump administration. “We have an act of terrorism committed by someone who entered the country illegally and was allowed to stay under the Biden-Harris policies. And the moment Democratic officials realized the potential impact it could have on the presidential election, “They panicked and tried to block the flow of information. But the Jewish community fought back.”
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION STATUS REVEALED IN SHOOTING OF JEW IN DEM-CONTROLLED CITY
Chicago Police Chief Larry Snelling announced terrorism and hate crime charges against Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi after he allegedly shot an Orthodox Jew. (WFLD)
Just two months ago, Canadian authorities arrested a 20-year-old Pakistani man who had planned to carry out an attack against the Jewish community in Brooklyn, New York.
At Thursday’s press conference, a WGN reporter mentioned ICE’s confirmation of Abdallahi’s Mauritanian nationality and asked if State Attorney Kim Foxx planned to comply with ICE’s detainer for Abdallahi filed at the county jail. by Cook.
“What we’re going to do today is announce the charges,” Foxx responded. “Next week, when we make the full offer, we will be able to confirm the information they have.” Because the suspect “is presumed innocent until proven guilty” and “has not had the opportunity to appear before a judge and face the charges,” Foxx said he was “not going to give a level of specificity that was not given to him.” has provided”. “
Pat Brady, a former federal and state attorney for Illinois, confirmed to Fox News Digital that “it is not unusual for details not to be made public until formal arraignment.”
Stay-at-home mom Malka Reich, who reportedly witnessed a portion of the attack that took place partially in her front yard (Ring camera footage of the incident taken at her home has been widely circulated) told Fox News Digital that believes that “the mayor and potentially members of the federal government are trying to cover up” key elements of the hate crime.
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The victim, described by the United Jewish Fund as a “member of the Jewish community,” was allegedly shot in the shoulder in Chicago. (Fox32 Chicago)
During Thursday’s news conference, Johnson was asked why he had not identified the victim’s religious background in previous statements. Johnson was widely condemned for sending “sincere thoughts and prayers” to the victim without describing her as Jewish.
Instead of answering the question, Johnson explained that “my responsibility as mayor of Chicago is to keep every community safe, and I take that responsibility seriously.” Johnson added that “terrorism wants to incite, inflame and make people feel isolated and alone. But the Jewish community is not alone. We stand firm with our Jewish brothers as I always have.”
Johnson has received condemnation in the past for contributing to a climate of anti-Semitism within Chicago, including through his tie-breaking vote in support of a ceasefire resolution passed in January by the City Council.
According to the Chicago Police Department’s Hate Crimes Panel, there have been 71 anti-Jewish hate crimes in the city in 2024, compared to 50 in 2023 and 39 in 2022.
Among many Chicago Jews dissatisfied with early responses to Saturday’s shooting was Councilwoman Debra Silverstein, who spoke to Fox News Digital before Abdallahi’s hate crime charge was announced. Silverstein expressed the feeling of the Chicago Jewish community that “the City Council does not have their back.”
Silverstein is also concerned about anti-Semitism in Chicago public schools. After the Chicago City Council ceasefire resolution was passed, students organized a pro-Palestinian walkout in which Silverstein said some Chicago students “were told not to wear blue and white” because the schools “weren’t sure they could do it. to protect them.”
In the midst of the battle over the events related to the Abdallahi shooting, the Jewish Insider published a story that the newly appointed president of the Chicago Board of Education, the Rev. Mitchell Johnson, had “a long history of posting inflammatory anti-Semitic, anti-Israel, and pro-Hamas content on social media.”
Silverstein said he quickly gathered 40 council members and the city clerk to ask for Rev. Johnson’s resignation. On October 31, the mayor stated that he had requested and received Reverend Johnson’s resignation, calling the reverend’s comments “not only hurtful but deeply disturbing.” The mayor stated that “anti-Semitic, misogynistic and conspiratorial statements are unacceptable.”
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Silverstein said he was “happy that [the Rev. Johnson] resigned” but that “he should never have been appointed in the first place; and my question is who and how was investigated in the beginning, and now I am worried about the other members and the investigation process for them as well.”
Fox News Digital repeatedly reached out to Mayor Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker for comment and clarification regarding the shooting victim’s religion, the climate of anti-Semitism in Chicago and other developments in the Abdallahi case. Neither office responded.
The Chicago Police Department, in response to questions about the shooter, referred Fox News Digital to its previous press releases.
