Body of murdered Iraqi-American mother Shaima Alawadi to be buried in Iraq
Shaima Alawadi is seen wearing sunglasses and a hijab in this image posted to a Facebook page created in her memory.
The body of Shaima Alawadi, an Iraqi-American woman beaten to death last week in San Diego, will be flown to Iraq for burial, according to The Detroit Free Press.
Alawadi, a 32-year-old mother of five, was taken off life support on Saturday, four days after her badly beaten body was discovered by her daughter next to a note which the daughter said read: “Go back to your country, you terrorist.”
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Police said today they were investigating the murder as a possible hate crime but cautioned that they had yet to rule out other possibilities, according to The Associated Press.
"Everybody is outraged," Imam Husham al-Husainy of the Karbalaa Islamic Education Center in Dearborn, Michigan, was quoted as saying by The Free Press. "This is too evil, too criminal."
Al-Husainy knew Alwadi as she used to live in Dearborn. He said her body was being prepared to be flown to Iraq for burial.
NBCSanDiego reported that services were held for Alawadi at a mosque in East County, CA
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Lawmakers in Iraq have demanded a thorough investigation, according to the AP.
James Redman, chief of police in El Cajon, California, was quoted as saying police were pursuing all avenues of investigation.
"I want to stress there is other evidence in this case that we are looking at and the possibility this is a hate crime is just one aspect," Redman was quoted as saying.
"We don't have tunnel vision on this case," he said. "We're looking at the big picture."
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