Shaima Alawadi, 32, was found unconscious in the dining room of her home in El Cajon, near San Diego, on Wednesday morning by her 17-year-old daughter, said El Cajon police spokesman Lieutenant Mark Coit.
She was taken to a local trauma center, where she was not expected to survive her injuries, he added.
Coit said in a statement that during the initial stages of the investigation a threatening note was discovered “very close to where the victim was found”.
“The victim's family stated they had found a similar note earlier this month, however (they) did not report it to authorities,” he added.
Coit did not detail the contents of the threatening note, or say whether police were treating the attack as a hate crime.
Although police are exploring all aspects of this investigation, he said, “evidence thus far leads us to believe this is an isolated incident.”
A family friend, Sura Alzaidy, told the San Diego Union Tribune newspaper the note read: “Go back to your own country. You're a terrorist.”
Alzaidy told the newspaper the family had only lived in the house in El Cajon for a few weeks, after moving back to San Diego County from Michigan.
Coit asked anyone with information regarding the investigation to contact the El Cajon Police Department.
COMMENTS (27)
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I do hope the police catch who is responsible and they get the maximum punishment. This is just terrible. However, it seems a bit "fishy" to me. Most of the articles about Shaima's murder don't mention the fact that the glass in the sliding glass door that was broken out by the murderer in order to obtain entry into the home was broken outwards. *That means that the person who smashed the glass out of the door with the crowbar was standing INSIDE the home at the time. The glass flew outward, all over the patio and onto patio furniture. That is very strange...
As such, I'm going to wait until the police conclude their investigation before believing 100% that it was a hate crime, although I certainly believe it is a possibility....the glass being broken from the inside is just a huge detail. If a stranger is breaking the glass out of a door to get into a home, he's not going to be doing it from inside the home.
My heart goes out to Shaima and her family.
@Wonderful: For the same reason that over 20 million Indians choose not to live in Bharat!
ET comment section needs discussion threads so that inattentive readers can understand who is talking to whom.
@usmanx: Good atleast you are not delusional just lame..
Unlike Indians, I am not the one bragging about how great of a paradise pakistan is...
@Bombay Dude:
Allah feeds every living creature in the universe... Not a country, not a system, not a job/business..These are all the ways and means by which He provides sustenance.
We should be thankful to Him and only Him!
license to kill???why
@ALi: Seriously ??? And you say you live in USA ? Tell me why are you living in USA then ? What is compelling you to live in land of million crimes ? eh ? Because your life in USA is much better than that in Pakistan. Hence you are living in USA. So stop being thankless to land and country which is feeding you, allowing you to work and providing you a safer way of living. You might have been blown out or shot dead in your crime free Pakistan by now., You know that , hence you fled to USA. It was seriously dumb of you to say that you are from USA.
“Go back to your own country. You’re a terrorist.”
Sounds like a hate-crime to me.
@ALi: You say: "The highest crime rate in the whole world is in America what are you talking about?"
What is considered a crime in USA and punished is considered normal, and at times a requirement to be a true Muslim in Pakistan. It is also justified and glorified on the basis of religion. BTW, Did the Judge who sentenced Mumtaz Quadri and had to flee to Saudi Arabia with his entire family return back ? Alu Anday song guys know better.
@Cautious: loser you don't know anything about America.
@Bombay dude: The highest crime rate in the whole world is in America what are you talking about? Get over your inferiority complex. We are living in USA we know what reality is. Hollywood is not close to reality, like Bollywood is the opposite of real India.
@u liar: this is your dream that they will catch him. Living in USA for the past 5 years nothing happens like we imagine sitting in Pakistan. There is a reason why USA is the number 1 country in crime rate.
ehsaas e kamtri kay shikaar Pakistanis!!!
This attack on an innocent woman is condemnable. But, many of the posters here are missing a very important point. In the US and rest of the civilized world the perpetrators will be punished as per the law. Now compare that with Pakistan where the terrorists are supported by the people and the state. A good example would be Salman Taseer whose killer was garlanded, cheered on and declared a great follower of Islam.
@Wonderful:
Actually they do want to live in the land of the pure but they have answered a greater calling to go throughtout the world spreading the values of the land of the pure.
They will hunt this guy down and catch him --- in addition to the normal penalties for assault this qualifies as a "hate crime" under California law which allow the judge to enhance the normal penalties. The San Diego has thousands of Muslims and the local politicians make it their business to get their votes - good example of how a Democracy is suppose to work.
Interesting how this is news. It is something that happens daily in most of PAK and nothing is done. Is this news because this woman was a muslim? Unfortunately there are more incidents of "so called honor killings" that occur in the US than murder because of being a muslim. In fact, there is a greater probability of a muslin woman being killed by another muslim than a non muslim.
@usmanx: Tell me why 3.2 million Pakistanis living outside Pakistan do not live in the Land of the Pure.
ok settle down bombay dude, it's too early. now tell me, why do 20 million Indians in the world don't live in paradise India? ou
@SalSal: No country can ever be perfect, including America. America is, indeed, land of the free, and if somebody believes in that, it doesn't turn them into a "liberal fascist." It's a simple fact which is hard for you to digest that America does actually give people the right to exercise any religion, while Pakistan does not. Apart from that, whoever attacked the Iraqi Muslim woman does not represent the whole American system, it is clearly hate speech and the American media is clearly against it and is supporting the Iraqi woman's family. So it really does not tape the mouth of anyone.
@ALi: @SalSal: Because such incident happened in USA, the culprit will be punished unlike in Pakistan where such crime is infact encouraged by the inept government and powerful mullahs. I bet ET will not cover the story when the culprit who attacked iraqi family is caught. Since you guys are looking it with religious angle, let me ask you, why does a iraqi still prefer to live in USA rather than moving to rakhwala of all muslims and self proclaimed Ummah...the Pakistan ????? What does that tell you about the state of your country where even muslims fear to come. That they prefer such threats in USA rather than zero quality life in Pakistan. Think about that!!!
So much in the land Of the free. I wonder if this tapes the mouth of the liberal fascists who idolize the Americans
Shameful and disgusting. I hope the killer is nabbed and spends the rest of his life in jail.
Unlike pakistan , where killers are honored and garlanded with flowers, the US will not allow this killer to go unpunished. The point is not that the crimes are not committed in the US, the point is that there is a rule of law there. Liberal minded people in Pakistan are not complaining about the commission of crimes, but the attitude of the Pakistani state toward religious fanatics:
@ALi: It is payback time.
Liberal fascists won't say anything on this one.