Achi news desk-
A fatal shooting at a Mississauga, Ont., chicken restaurant in May 2021 was allegedly prompted by the accused trying to stop the victim from telling police that a group of men he was doing business with had pledged allegiance to ISIS.
That’s what Assistant Crown Attorney David D’Iorio told the jury in his opening address in Brampton Superior Court this week.
On the evening of May 29, 2021, 22-year-old Daniel Akl was working at the front counter of his family’s Chicken Land restaurant on the corner of Glen Erin and The Collegeway in Mississauga. Akl’s parents had been operating the takeout restaurant for almost three decades. Along with Daniel, his parents, his brother Naim, his teenage sister Sandra and a family friend, Rohullah Rawi, all worked hard.
Just after 7:15 pm, a masked man with a hood entered through the front door of Chicken Land, pulled a handgun out of a satchel he was carrying and shot Daniel in the neck. Rawi was shot on the right side of the head. Naim was shot twice, once in the face and once in the left ear – his wounds were fatal. The mother was shot in the upper right arm, and the father was hit in the chest. Sandra was also fired upon, but the bullet missed her.
D’Iorio told the jury that after firing seven shots, the gunman fled to a getaway car, stopping just down the street. The shooter entered the trunk of that car before the driver sped off.
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By the time first responders arrived, Naim was dead. None of the survivors could identify the gunman.
D’Iorio said Naqash Abbasi, Suliman Raza and Anand Nath were found guilty of first degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.
The Crown alleges that Naim Akl met and befriended a group of men who claimed to be devout followers of the Islamic faith. The leader was Abassi and his followers included Raza and Nath.
D’Iorio said that Naim did not tell his family that he had converted to Islam, from the Druze faith, and began working in Abbasi’s warehouse business with Raza and Nath. The warehouse was called Fulfillment by Amazon or an FBA business.
Inside the business, which was known as “Tryalinc,” the Crown says, they weren’t just buying and selling products through Amazon.
“Mr. Abbasi and his followers had pledged allegiance to ISIS, the Islamic State, and was using the business to finance that organisation. Money was being sent ‘back home’ to promote that cause,” said D’Iorio.
The Crown says Naim became aware that Abassi and his group had pledged allegiance to ISIS. After falling out over the business, Naim planned to go to the authorities and betray them.
“So they came up with a plan to prevent that from happening. Naim Akl and his entire family would be killed,” D’Iorio explained.
The Crown said they will prove that Abassi actively encouraged Raza and Nath to commit the crimes. Raza was the driver and Nath was the gunman who planned to kill every person in the restaurant.
The three men have pleaded not guilty.
The trial continues.
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