Ritu Jha–
Families of two Indian-origin students who were stabbed in Fremont, California on November 17 have set up a GoFundMe page to cover the medical bills. “We are creating this fundraiser for their medical expenses, and long-term rehabilitation, including extensive therapies. And help them with living expenses, and to get them back on their feet. They are both students and do not have jobs to support themselves. This fundraiser will also help cover some of their tuition and other educational expenses,” the gofundme page states.
On Friday November 17, three friends — Syed Shadan ul Haq, Khalid Bin Masood Yafai, and Mohammad Abdul Basur Sufiyan — were heading to a local shop near Fremont Hub, an outdoor shopping center in the city’s Central District, to buy soft drinks.
All three hail from the Hyderabad region in the south-central Indian state of Telangana and are studying computer management in the US.
The incident occurred at 4:30 pm. Khalid and Shadan were stabbed while waiting for Sufiyan, who had gone to the shop to buy the colas. The three had met to spend the Friday evening together, but their plans went awry as the perpetrator suddenly attacked them with a knife.
Haq told indica, a few weeks ago Villareal, whom they had seen roaming in the Fremont Hub area, approached him asking do you have a smoke (cigarette). And he (Haq) in reply said, “No I don’t smoke.”
Mohammed Junaid Ali, brother-in-law of Shadan Syed told indica, the good news is Khalid Masood Yafai, is recovering though will be in hospital and cannot speak at present. “We are not sure how long it would take him to recover,” he said. “However,” he said, “Shadan, who was released from the hospital is complaining of severe pain in his chest.”
“The painkillers are not working and he is still in shock,” Ali told indica, and added, that the community is in shock since no one knows the motive why they were attacked or since when he was planning this.
The suspect, according to city of Fremont police spokesperson Kim Macdonald, is Miguel Angel Villareal, 28, and he was arrested a few hours after the assault.
Villareal has a lengthy criminal history, including an arrest for robbery, battery on a person inflicting serious bodily injury, resisting an officer, and related drug-related offenses. Villareal’s motivation for this crime is currently unknown and still under investigation.
Ali told indica, the footage shown to him by the police, shows a hooded man (Villareal) stabbing without any word exchanged. “So, this makes us wonder what he wanted and why, and what was his motive.”
He said the police are saying it’s not a hate crime and we cannot say until Yafai is able to speak again. They say it’s a mental issue.
They don’t have insurance and being a student, they have to take therapy and have to take Khalid for counseling. The family is also working on bringing the parents of Haq to the US.
Families of Fremont stabbing victims start crowdfunding page to pay medical bills
