Fresno County Murder/Hate Crime

In the wake of what was most likely another racially motivated murder on September 30th, I attended an October 2nd press conference held by the Fresno-Area Muslim Leaders at Fresno City Hall. The Muslim leaders were calling for investigation of the murder of Abdo Ali Ahmed as a hate crime. He was killed in his market in Reedley, California (a city in southern Fresno County) by four young men. There was no evidence of a robbery and he had received several threats in the days preceding his murder.

Reporters from most local media outlets attended the press conference. I thought that several reporters displayed a lack of sensitivity or tact during the meeting, and some Non-Muslim observers said they felt the reporters were antagonistic towards the Muslim leaders.

One reporter asked, "Are you just not satisfied with the answers the Sheriff's Department is currently giving? They are saying it is just to early to tell if this was a hate crime. Are you not satisfied by that?"

Another question I thought was somewhat confrontive was, "As of yesterday the FBI was at the disposal of the Sheriff's Department but in fact the FBI was not being used. Do you have any opinion as to what the FBI's role should be? Should they be the lead investigators on this? Should they actively be out there with the Sheriff's Department and the homicide detectives?"

The Muslim leaders were pleased with that morning's report that the FBI had decided to investigate the crime as a hate crime. The leaders explained that members of the Muslim community are saddened by their loss and frightened. My impression was that they handled the challenging questions graciously.