All of the recent victims come from Pakistan and have various spellings of the last name, Hussein.
Police believe the victims may be related to the November 2021 murder of 62-year-old, Afghan immigrant Mohammad Ahmadi in a parking lot by a halal supermarket and cafe.
The murders of three Muslim men in New Mexico’s largest city in the past nine months were likely linked and they appear to have been targeted for their religion and race, police said.
“There’s one strong commonality in all of our victims — their race and religion,” Albuquerque police Deputy Commander Kyle Hartsock told a Thursday press briefing, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican newspaper.
“If a bias-motive is determined, state and federal authorities should apply appropriate hate crime charges,” CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement.
