A suspect who allegedly shot a Jewish man near a Chicago synagogue in late October was found dead at the Cook County Jail on Saturday.
Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, a 22-year-old from the northwest African country of Mauritania, died by hanging himself, according to prison officials, Fox affiliate WFLD reported.
“The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office is conducting an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of Abdallahi’s death,” the news outlet said.
Terrorist who shot Jewish man walking to Chicago synagogue is found dead in his jail cell https://t.co/3bCvXQyXzE pic.twitter.com/tAv5WgFQIE
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) December 2, 2024
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement, there was “[n]o indication of risk of suicide prior to the incident.”
Abdallahi, who entered the U.S. illegally in March 2023 in California, allegedly shot a 39-year-old Orthodox Jewish man on Oct. 26 in Chicago’s West Rogers Park neighborhood, which is the home of one of the city’s largest Orthodox Jewish populations, Jewish News Syndicate reported.
Abdallahi allegedly shot the victim in the shoulder, who was treated in the hospital and later released, per WFLD.
“When medics arrived to assist the victim, Abdallahi allegedly returned to the scene and fired multiple shots at first responders. Chicago police returned fire, critically injuring Abdallahi, who was arrested about 30 minutes later,” WFLD reported.
The sound of gunfire and movement in front of a house was captured in doorcam video, along with an ambulance speeding away.
WARNING: The following video contains audio that may be disturbing for some readers.
KAMALA MIGRANT JIHADIST: Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi was just charged with terrorism after shooting Jewish man & police on Sat in Chicago. Abdallahi, from Mauritania, was detained and released by Border Patrol in San Diego in ’23. He then traveled to “Sanctuary-city” Chicago. pic.twitter.com/wuQOqxNb46
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) October 31, 2024
The suspect was critically wounded in the shoot-out with police and apprehended.
He was treated at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston and later transported to Cermak, the medical facility inside the Cook County Jail, Jewish News Syndicate reported.
“He was housed in Cermak Health Services Tier 3S as a result of the medical and mental health evaluations conducted by staff at Cermak Health Services, which is responsible for the mental health and medical care of all individuals in custody and determines what housing is appropriate based on the level of care required for individuals in custody,” the Cook County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
“There is no evidence of foul play [in his death] at this time,” the sheriff’s office added.
Abdallahi faced terrorism, hate crime, and attempted murder charges, among others.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement “lodged an immigration detainer with Cook County Jail” in October, according to ABC affiliate KHQA-TV. Chicago is a sanctuary city.
“Many more questions than answers now in front of the American people,” Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Jewish News Syndicate.
“Who was he? Who were his known associates? Where did he radicalize, and why was something like this not planned for and prevented?”
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