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Father of toddler found dead in New Mexico found guilty
A father of a Clayton County toddler who was found dead in a New Mexico compound has been found guilty in connection to the three-year-old's 2018 abduction.
CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. - A father of a Clayton County toddler found dead in a New Mexico compound was found guilty Tuesday in connection to the boy’s 2018 abduction.
Siraj Ibn Wahhag was convicted of terrorism charges while other members of his family were convicted of a mix of charges, including kidnapping and terrorism.
It is a case that prosecutors say spans from religious prophecies to terrorism.
Hakima Ramzi, the mother of 3-year-old Abdul-ghani Wahhaj, says her estranged husband, Wahhag, took the boy from Jonesboro without permission back in 2018.
Investigators’ search led them to a heavily-armed Wahhaj, along with four other adults and 11 children in a remote, desert compound in New Mexico where they were living in filthy conditions and without running water.
Abdul-ghani Wahhaj
Investigators say Abdul-ghani lived with developmental disabilities and had frequent seizures and ultimately, his badly decomposed remains were found on the compound.
Prosecutors say Wahhaj and his family members believed the toddler would be resurrected as Jesus Christ. They added that the adults fled to the remote location, so they could engage in firearms and tactical training to prepare for what investigators called violent attacks on the government, military, and schools.
Prosecutors said Wahhaj’s sisters were involved in a "sick end-of-times scheme."
The toddler’s exact cause of death was never determined, and a sentencing date has not yet been set.
In a statement an attorney for Abdul-ghani Wahhaj's mother says she is relieved by the verdict.
"She remains saddened and grief-stricken," Ramzi's attorney M. Khurram Baig said. "This verdict helps bring her some closure but she will never truly heal from this tragedy."