Albuquerque murder suspect's son arrested for allegedly lying on a federal gun background check: report

On Wednesday, The Daily Beast reported that the son of the suspect in at least two murders of Muslim men in Albuquerque, New Mexico has been arrested for an alleged violation of federal gun laws.

"Shaheen 'Maiwand' Syed was arrested on Tuesday and charged with allegedly buying two guns while using a fake address," reported Pilar Melendez. "In an affidavit criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court for New Mexico, prosecutors allege the younger Syed indicated he lived in Broward County, Florida, when purchasing two rifles in June 2021 in Albuquerque — when he had lived New Mexico for years."

"The discrepancy was revealed during an investigation into the elder Syed in connection with the July 26 killing of Aftab Hussein and the Aug. 1 killing of Muhammad Afzaal Hussain," said the report. "The AR-15 and AK-47 the young Syed allegedly bought are not mentioned in the criminal complaint against his father — but it does list guns that the pair bought together."

The killings the elder Syed is a suspect in have caused terror in the Muslim community in Albuquerque.

The elder Syed, who denies involvement in the killings, is a Sunni Muslim who, according to local mosque official Ahmad Assed, may have been targeting Muslim men out of rage that his daughter is marrying a Shi'a Muslim. And according to a separate Daily Beast report, the elder Syed has a long history of domestic abuse allegations against him.

"Among the wild array of arrests for battery and domestic violence detailed in court records obtained by The Daily Beast against Muhammad Syed, the 51-year-old has allegedly threatened to kill his daughter’s boyfriend, beat his wife in a state building, lacerated his son’s head with a metal spoon, kicked a Walmart employee, and punished his daughter after she refused to take her brother to college with her as an escort," reported Decca Muldowney, Kate Briquelet, and Pilar Melendez. "But despite the alleged years-long abuse, Syed never faced charges, in part, because his family always seemed to downplay the incident once police arrived at the scene."

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