An imam and his assistant have been shot dead in broad daylight in NY yesterday after attending prayers at a nearby mosque.
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Although police said no motive had been established for the killing of Imam Maulama Akonjee, 55, and 64-year-old Thara Uddin Saturday afternoon near the Al-Furqan Jame Masjid mosque, community members anxious the slayings could be rooted in intolerance.
NBC4 NY reported that a preliminary investigation indicated that the men were shot during the course of a robbery, but added that authorities said they may have been targeted.
Imam Maulama Akonjee, 55, moved to the city from Bangladesh two years ago, reports in NY said.
The statement identified the imam as Maulama Akonjee, 55.
“All NYers must stand united in condemning acts like these”, she added.
More than 100 people attended a rally on Saturday night and chanted “We want justice!”
The crime, during a wave of anti-Muslim hostility across the country, unsettled many in the neighborhood, an enclave that area leaders described as a growing hub of Muslim families from Bangladesh that straddles the border between Brooklyn and Queens. “There is a very loud cry, too, for the NYPD to investigate fully, with the total amount of their resources, the incident that happened today”. The motive for the shooting is still unclear and the local police department is in no rush to declare it a hate crime.
Protests have erupted in the neighbourhood, denouncing a “hate crime”, with some accusing Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump of stoking Islamophobia.
Mr Trump, who has been accused of exploiting fears of Islamist attacks for political ends, was rounded on by members of the Muslim community in Queens. He said he had advised people to be careful walking around, especially when in traditional clothing.
Milat Uddin, who worships at the mosque, told Associated Press that authorities should treat the killing as a hate crime.
“The community’s heart is totally broken”, said Uddin, who is not related to Thara Uddin. It’s a great loss to the community and it’s a great loss to the society’.
Ms Akonjee said she rushed to her parents’ home after the shooting. She said her father was a caring man who would call her just to check up on whether she had eaten properly.
His neighbours also described him as thoughtful, recounting how he would water both his own garden and the one next door.
“A very honest, wise man”.
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The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, held a news conference on Saturday near the Al-Furqan Jame Masjid, where the two men had prayed.
