Sep. 1—In the days before Muhammad Atif Syed’s arrest in 2022, FBI agents filed court records drawing possible links between five Albuquerque killings and one non-fatal shooting.
Syed, 53, is expected to enter a plea Tuesday that could close the criminal cases tied to a string of shooting deaths that stoked fear in Albuquerque’s Muslim community in 2022.
Just two days before Syed’s arrest on Aug. 9, 2022, FBI investigators filed a search warrant affidavit seeking cellphone and social media records in connection with six Albuquerque shooting incidents, of which three remain unsolved. They are:
The killing of Mohammad Zahir Ahmadi, 62, an Afghan man, who was found shot to death on Nov. 7, 2021, behind an Albuquerque market he owned with his brother. Albuquerque police said Syed was investigated in connection with Ahmadi’s death, but no charges have been filed.Reza Jamali, an Afghan man of about 40, told Albuquerque police he was driving near 501 Columbia SE on July 21, 2022, when another driver fired multiple shots at him. Jamali was not injured, and no charges have been filed in the case.The shooting death of Chuihsia Chen, who was found dead in a parked car on July 11, 2022, in the vicinity of San Mateo and Grand NE. Her death remains unsolved.
Syed, who was born in Afghanistan, ultimately was charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shootings of three Albuquerque Muslim men.
He was convicted by a jury in March of first-degree murder in the July 26, 2022, shooting death of 41-year-old Aftab Hussein. The conviction requires him to serve at least 30 years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
Syed has reached a plea deal that could resolve the remaining two charges of first-degree murder he faces, his attorneys said Wednesday. A judge must approve the agreement.
The plea deal comes on the eve of Syed’s second trial in the Aug. 1, 2022, shooting death of 27-year-old Mohammud Afzaal Hussain.
State District Judge Britt Baca canceled the trial and scheduled a hearing on Tuesday to consider the plea agreement.
The plea deal also could resolve a first-degree murder charge Syed faces in the shooting death of Naeem Hussein, 25, a Pakistani man found dead in his car on Aug. 5, 2022, outside Lutheran Family Services, 230 Truman NE.
Chen’s killing
Chen, 56, a woman of Chinese descent, was found in a parked car penetrated by four bullets that originated from a .38-caliber or 9mm cartridge, FBI agents wrote in a search warrant affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque.
Chen was fatally shot on July 11, 2022, about 300 feet from the site where Naeem Hussein was killed and about 15 days before Aftab Hussein was killed, it said. No charges have been filed in her killing.
Police found $8,250 cash left untouched in Chen’s vehicle.
Albuquerque Police Department spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said Chen’s killing shared some similarities to the killings of the Muslim men.
“Investigators were interested in the murder of Chuihsia Chen because of the apparent randomness with no attempt to rob the victim,” Gallegos said.
Chen’s injuries, which fell within a 3.5-inch shot grouping, “indicated that this was a targeted shooting by an individual with firearms training,” the affidavit said.
Syed’s trial in March revealed little about Syed’s background in Afghanistan.
Syed told police in an interview that he had served in the Afghan military, but prosecutors were barred from introducing the interview to jurors during his trial.
Video footage showed that Chen’s killer drove past Chen’s car, “then doubled back around to fire at the decedent from close range,” suggesting the shooter was “working to identify a known target.”
Amanda Smith is a dedicated U.S. correspondent with a passion for uncovering the stories that shape the nation. With a background in political science, she provides in-depth analysis and insightful commentary on domestic affairs, ensuring readers are well-informed about the latest developments across the United States.
