Saleh Q. Mohamed and the 2026 Buffalo–Cheektowaga Killings
Overview
Saleh Q. Mohamed is a Cheektowaga, New York, man accused of killing four people during two connected shooting incidents on June 1, 2026. The victims were Mohamed’s 26-year-old wife, Aaisha Abdulla; their two young sons, 4-year-old Youssef Mohamed and 3-year-old Saif Mohamed; and 43-year-old Buffalo store clerk Shukri Muthana. The deaths of the mother and children inside their suburban home, followed by the fatal shooting of Muthana at a Buffalo business, led prosecutors to charge Mohamed with multiple counts of first- and second-degree murder.
Mohamed was 28 when the shootings occurred and turned 29 the following day. Authorities have described the deaths as intentional killings, although the criminal case remained pending and Mohamed was legally presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Investigators said the two crime scenes were connected, but officials had not publicly established a complete motive for the four deaths.
The Shooting of Aaisha Abdulla and Her Children
According to prosecutors, Aaisha Abdulla and her two sons were shot inside the family’s residence on Ellen Drive in Cheektowaga on Monday, June 1, 2026. The house was located in a residential neighborhood east of Buffalo. Authorities said Mohamed used a 9-millimeter handgun that was legally registered to him.
A concerned relative contacted authorities after family members were unable to reach anyone inside the home. At approximately 3:30 p.m., Cheektowaga police officers responded to the residence to conduct a welfare check. No one answered the door. After officers entered, they discovered Abdulla and both children dead from gunshot wounds.
The victims were found together inside what had been their family home. Police Chief Brian Coons said officers had not previously been called to the residence and that Mohamed did not have a known criminal record. The absence of a documented history of police responses at the home left investigators with few immediately apparent warning signs or explanations for the violence.
Mohamed returned to the Ellen Drive property while officers were still investigating. Police took him into custody without incident. Authorities did not report a prolonged confrontation or attempt to flee at the time of his arrest.
The Killing of Shukri Muthana
Approximately one hour before police entered the Cheektowaga residence, Buffalo officers had been dispatched to a separate shooting at a store in the 1000 block of Grant Street near Military Road. The business was located in Buffalo’s Black Rock neighborhood, roughly a 15-minute drive from the family’s home.
Police received the shooting report at approximately 2:38 p.m. Officers found 43-year-old Shukri Muthana suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. Emergency personnel attempted to help him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Muthana, a resident of Lackawanna, was working as a clerk at the store when he was killed. Local reporting identified the business as Aref’s Deli and described Muthana as an owner or worker associated with the neighborhood store. Prosecutors accused Mohamed of intentionally shooting Muthana before the discovery of the three victims in Cheektowaga.
Authorities said Mohamed, his family and Muthana were members of the same Yemeni community in the Buffalo area. Investigators confirmed that the Grant Street shooting and the Ellen Drive deaths were connected to the same defendant, but they did not immediately explain Mohamed’s relationship with Muthana or disclose what may have caused the store shooting.
Victims
- Aaisha Abdulla, 26: Mohamed’s wife. She was found shot to death on June 1, 2026, inside the family residence on Ellen Drive in Cheektowaga, New York.
- Youssef Mohamed, 4: Mohamed and Abdulla’s older son. He was found shot to death on June 1, 2026, inside the Ellen Drive home. Youssef was a prekindergarten student at Maryvale Elementary School.
- Saif Mohamed, 3: Mohamed and Abdulla’s younger son. He was found shot to death on June 1, 2026, inside the family residence in Cheektowaga.
- Shukri Muthana, 43: A Lackawanna resident and store clerk who was shot in the chest on June 1, 2026, at a business in the 1000 block of Grant Street near Military Road in Buffalo, New York. He died at the scene.
Community Mourning
The killings caused profound grief within the Buffalo-area Yemeni and Muslim communities. Hundreds of mourners gathered at Masjid Al-Salam in Buffalo for funeral prayers honoring Aaisha Abdulla and her two children. Their coffins were carried from the mosque to waiting hearses as relatives, friends and community members struggled to understand the loss of a young mother and two children.
Youssef’s school community also mourned the death of the 4-year-old student. Family representatives asked that photographs of the children remain private. Community leaders described the deaths as heartbreaking and emphasized that the loss affected people throughout Cheektowaga, Buffalo, Lackawanna and the region’s close-knit Yemeni community.
Muthana was buried following a separate funeral at a mosque in Lackawanna. Friends and community members remembered him as a working man whose life ended while he was serving customers at a neighborhood business. His death intensified the shock surrounding the case because investigators initially provided little explanation for why he had allegedly been targeted.
Arrest and Initial Charges
Mohamed was first arraigned in Cheektowaga Town Court on charges connected to the deaths of his wife and children. The initial accusations included one count of first-degree murder and three counts of second-degree murder. He was separately arraigned in Buffalo City Court on a second-degree murder charge for the death of Shukri Muthana.
Prosecutors said Mohamed possessed a permit for the 9-millimeter handgun believed to have been used in the killings. Officials did not announce that Mohamed had a prior criminal record, and Cheektowaga police said the department had no previous history of responding to domestic incidents at the Ellen Drive residence.
Mohamed was held without bail after his arraignments. Investigators from the Cheektowaga Police Department and Buffalo Police Department coordinated their work because the four deaths occurred in two different jurisdictions.
Grand Jury Indictment
On June 15, 2026, Mohamed appeared before New York State Supreme Court Justice Deborah A. Haendiges and was arraigned on a grand jury indictment. The indictment charged him with three counts of first-degree murder and four counts of second-degree murder.
The first-degree murder accusations reflected the allegation that Mohamed intentionally killed multiple people during the same criminal episode. The second-degree murder counts addressed the individual deaths of Abdulla, Youssef, Saif and Muthana. Prosecutors alleged that Mohamed personally and intentionally caused all four deaths.
If convicted of the most serious charges, Mohamed could receive life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. He continued to be detained without bail while the case proceeded through the court system.
Unanswered Questions
Despite the charges, important questions remained unanswered. Authorities did not publicly identify a clear motive for the deaths of Mohamed’s wife and children. Police also did not fully explain why Muthana was allegedly killed at the Grant Street store or what connection existed between the two men beyond their association with the same broader community.
The short period between the shootings created uncertainty about their exact order. Police were called to the Grant Street store at approximately 2:38 p.m., while the family members were discovered during the welfare check at approximately 3:30 p.m. The times indicate when authorities responded and found the victims, not necessarily the exact moments when each person was shot.
The case therefore centered on an alleged sequence of four intentional killings committed within a limited period on June 1, 2026. Prosecutors were expected to rely on physical evidence, firearm evidence, crime-scene findings and the circumstances of Mohamed’s return to the Ellen Drive residence. As the court proceedings continued, Mohamed remained accused rather than convicted, and the responsibility for determining guilt rested with the judicial process.
