Man convicted in killing of Muslim cleric and his assistant
A New York City man was convicted Friday of first-degree murder for the broad daylight killings of a Muslim cleric and his assistant.
A state supreme court jury convicted Oscar Morel, 37, in the fatal shootings of Imam Maulana Akonjee and Thara Uddin, his friend and assistant. The men were shot as they walked home following prayers on Aug. 13, 2016.
Richard A. Brown, district attorney of the borough of Queens, called the killings "a senseless act of gun violence in the middle of the afternoon and carried out in a close-knit neighborhood filled with families and children."
Brown said in a statement that he hopes the verdict "will bring some closure to the family and many friends of the two men killed."
