65-year-old at mosque to pray is shot and killed in carjacking, Pennsylvania cops say
.png "Police in Pennsylvania are investigating after they say a 65-year-old man was killed outside of a mosque.")
Police in Pennsylvania are investigating after they say a 65-year-old man was killed outside of a mosque, news outlets report.
Officers were called to the parking lot outside the Masjid Al Madinah Upper Darby Islamic Center around 7:45 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29, WCAU reported.
When they arrived, police said they found a man who had been fatally shot in the parking lot, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Witnesses said the man was there for prayer, according to WPVI.
Ziaur Rahman, who was at the mosque for worship, told CBS News there were around 150 people inside for the final prayer of the day.
“I can’t put in words the feeling and the trauma that I’m going through right now after hearing that this could have happened to someone like him,” Ahmad Ibrahim, a friend of the victim, told WPVI.
Police say the victim’s car was taken and found by officers a short time later, according to WCAU.
Officers also found a cell phone in a nearby drain, WPVI reported.
“To be shot next to the mosque, it makes me very sad. Even though I don’t know the person, I know he is one of us. So, if anything happens to another Muslim, especially next to the mosque, it really affects me directly and indirectly. It’s really sad,” Abdul Hayou told the news outlet.
Officials told the Inquirer they do not believe this was a hate crime but that they “believe this was a random act of violence.”
As of Oct. 30, no arrests have been made and the victim’s name had not been released.
Upper Darby is less than 10 miles west of Philadelphia.
This story was originally published October 30, 2023 at 1:37 PM with the headline "65-year-old at mosque to pray is shot and killed in carjacking, Pennsylvania cops say."
