The gunman who allegedly shot a Jewish man walking to a Chicago synagogue on Saturday is an illegal immigrant who was caught and released into the country earlier this year, according to Fox News’s Bill Melugin.
The suspect, who police identified as 22-year-old Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, is reportedly a Mauritanian national who was apprehended in Border Patrol’s San Diego sector in March 2023 before being released.
More than 15,000 people from Mauritania, a predominantly Muslim country in northwest Africa, entered the United States last year, with many relying on routes shared through social media networks, according to the Washington Post.
A Jewish man walking to synagogue was shot in Chicago on Saturday.
Malka shared her security camera footage with The Daily Wire, which captured the shooter screaming “Allahu Akbar” and shooting at first responders when he returned to the scene 20 minutes later. pic.twitter.com/qhD11WMA1b
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) October 28, 2024
Abdallahi allegedly shot a 39-year-old man at 9:25 a.m. in Chicago’s West Rogers Park neighborhood, then returned less than 30 minutes later and opened fire on police, paramedics, and bystanders. He was caught on a neighbor’s security camera screaming “Allahu Akbar” during the second attack.
Police returned fire, injuring Abdallahi, before taking him to the hospital.
In a video shared with The Daily Wire, police are seen engaging in a shootout with Abdallahi on a sidewalk. In another video, neighbors’ reactions are documented as they discover the injured shooter outside their home’s window.
In another video shared by the same neighbor, the gunman is seen on the ground after his shootout with police. pic.twitter.com/Nol43n6SXe
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) October 28, 2024
The Jewish United Fund said police and local politicians confirmed the gunman yelled “Allahu Akbar” in a meeting after the incident.
Abdallahi was charged with 14 felony counts, including six counts of attempted murder in the first degree, seven counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, and one count of aggravated battery/discharge of a firearm.
Community leaders and neighbors have said they are frustrated Abdallahi was not charged with a hate crime.
“Notably, and despite evidence that seems to suggest an antisemitic motive for the shooting, authorities did not file hate crime charges,” 50th Ward Alderman Debra Silverstein said in a statement. “I am very disappointed by this turn of events and strongly encourage the Cook County State’s Attorney Office to prosecute the offender to the full extent of the law.”
Silverstein added that she has spoken to police who “share our disgust at a Jewish man being the victim of violence over the Jewish holidays.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has drawn criticism from residents after condemning the shooting without mentioning that the victim was Jewish, or whether that may have motivated the attacker.
A Jew was shot on his way to synagogue last shabbat in my old neighborhood in Chicago by Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi. Here is how the Mayor reacted -and below, how reacted to a different incident a year ago. I’ve never been a fan of hate crimes laws – and they’re even worse when their… pic.twitter.com/P40lmo2atA
— Eugene Kontorovich (@EVKontorovich) October 30, 2024
Johnson voted in favor of an anti-Israel resolution earlier this year that demanded a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war without mentioning Hamas. He was mocked by critics who said he should be calling for a ceasefire in Chicago.
A congressional report released in August revealed that under the Biden-Harris administration, border patrol has encountered more than 250 illegal immigrants on the terror watch list, 99 of whom were released into the United States.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said the agency has “had no interaction” with Abdallahi “at this time.”
