Chicago, Illinois - Joseph Czuba, the landlord who in 2023 murdered a six-year-old Palestinian-American boy and severely wounded his mother, died behind bars three months after being sentenced.

Czuba died on Thursday while in the custody of the Illinois Corrections Department, according to the Chicago Sun-Times which cited the Will County Sheriff's Office.

His cause of death has not been revealed by the authorities, but it is known that Czuba had stage four cancer.

Shortly after October 7, 2023, Czuba attacked and murdered six-year-old Wadee Al Fayoumi and severely injured his mother, Hanan Shaheen.

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Wadee was stabbed 26 times and died during the attack, which has since been classified as a hate crime. Czuba had been following far-right commentators who spread anti-Muslim hate.

In February, Czuba was found guilty of murder, attempted murder, and hate-crime charges. He was sentenced in May to 53 years in prison.

Ahmed Rehab, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations Chicago branch, told the Chicago Sun-Times while Czuba has died, "the hate is still alive and well."

"Wadee was stabbed to death 26 times for being Palestinian," Rehab said. "Two years later, even as we speak, thousands of Gazan children are being shot, bombed and starved to death for being Palestinian. It’s the hate that must die."

Wadee's father, Odai Al Fayoumi, said after Czuba's conviction, "I don't know if I should be pleased or upset, if I should be crying or laughing."

"People are telling me to smile. Maybe if I were one of you, I would be smiling, but I'm the father of the child, and I lost the child. I feel like this decision came a little too late."