A father and son are suspected of killing Muslims in New Mexico

The deaths of four Muslim men have shocked the Muslim community in New Mexico's largest city, and police believe the chief suspect's son may have been involved.

At the time of the August 5 murder of 25-year-old trucking entrepreneur Naeem Hussain, 21-year-old Shaheen Syed was in the same "general area" of Albuquerque as his father, according to cellphone data, federal prosecutors wrote in a filing for a Monday detention hearing during which Syed was denied bail.

Police this week accused Shaheen Syed's father, Muhammad Syed, 51, in two of the deaths and connected the four slayings to personal disputes that may have been stoked by animosity between Muslim sects. Due to giving a false address, Shaheen Syed was detained last week on federal gun charges.

According to the complaint, law enforcement officials have lately found evidence that purports to link the defendant, Shaheen Syed, to these serial killings.

Based on an FBI study of cell tower data, agents believe Shaheen Syed saw Naeem Hussain leave a burial service for two of the deceased Muslim men on August 5. He then pursued Hussain to a parking lot, where he was shot to death.

Quick surveillance calls, both before and after the incident, would be consistent with phone communications between Muhammad Atif Syed and the defendant (Shaheen Syed)," the petition stated.

Afzaal Hussain, a Pakistani national, and Aftab Hussein, a 41-year-old cafe manager with connections to both Afghanistan and Pakistan, have been accused of being killed by Muhammad Syed, an Afghan refugee. On November 7, 2021, a fourth guy, 62-year-old store owner Mohammad Ahmadi, was killed.